Russia & Crypto: It’s Complicated 🤯

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The Russian Finance Ministry is contemplating letting slightly less wealthy people dabble in the fascinating world of cryptocurrency. Apparently, needing to be a minor oligarch isn’t *strictly* necessary anymore.

The current plan involves fiddling with the rules of the Central Bank’s “let’s see if this blows up in our faces” pilot scheme, which is, naturally, a testing ground for rules that may or may not ever exist. It’s all very official and vaguely terrifying.

Ministry Pushes to Lower Investor Barriers (Slightly)

According to whispers from the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok – a place that clearly has more economic forums than actual economics – a fellow named Alexey Yakovlev from the Finance Ministry admitted they’re thinking about lowering the bar. Which, it’s worth noting, was previously set at “owning a small country” or “earning more than most countries.”

“We are discussing exactly these figures,” Yakovlev declared to a room full of reporters who were probably already discussing exactly how to avoid filing taxes. The figures in question were 100 million rubles (about a million and a quarter dollars – pocket change, really) in investments or 50 million rubles (a mere six hundred and fifteen thousand dollars) in annual income.

“We believe these criteria can be adjusted downwards. It’s being discussed now.”

You see, in Russia, if you don’t have enough money to buy a small island, you’re not considered a “proper” investor. They call these people “superquals,” which sounds like a particularly pretentious brand of breakfast cereal. Limiting participation to superquals rather defeats the purpose of a test, apparently. It’s a bit like testing a car by only letting Formula 1 drivers have a go. 🤔

Russia Central Bank Resistance and Putin’s Compromise (a Delicate Dance)

Last year, President Putin – a man known for his decisive action and subtle nudges – told the Finance Ministry and the Central Bank to sort out this crypto business. It’s like telling two grumpy trolls to agree on where to build a bridge. Since then, Russia’s been cautiously doing a crypto pivot, using Bitcoin for things like, well, not getting sanctioned quite so much in trade deals. Plus, Putin suggested if anyone has spare electricity, they should use it to make more Bitcoin. Because why not? 💡

However, the Bank of Russia continues to insist that decentralized currencies are a menace to society, akin to tiny, digital gremlins. They’d prefer to keep everything locked up in the “Especially Legal Regime” (ELR), and anyone caught using crypto outside of it will face… consequences. Potentially involving paperwork. Lots of paperwork.

In May 2025 (the future is now!), they even grudgingly allowed “qualified” investors to play with Bitcoin futures. Apparently, they bought $16 million worth in a month. Which is a lot of futures. And probably a lot of confused accountants. 💸

The ELR is only temporary-a trial run of three years-after which, permanent rules will be decided. Theoretically. Yakovlev explained this with the air of someone politely explaining to a badger why you’re building a fence.

The whole situation boils down to regulators screaming “Danger!” while politicians whisper “Profit!” It also confirms Russia’s somewhat hesitant march towards digital assets, from circumventing sanctions with Bitcoin, to nationalized crypto mining farms. It’s a fascinating mess, really.

Despite all the official fuss, Russians are estimated to be hoarding over $25 billion in digital assets. And since decent exchanges are unavailable, most of it is bought on foreign platforms. Because irony, apparently, is a universal constant. 🤷

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2025-09-05 04:22