In 2026, a large-scale investigation will be launched into Russian companies’ and citizens’ investments in digital assets.
The Russian Central Bank is preparing to carry out an extensive inspection of the country’s cryptocurrency market, involving both businesses and private individuals. The initiative, officially announced by the monetary authority, will begin within the first two months of 2026 and represents an attempt to map Russia’s crypto ecosystem.
Objectives and timeline
According to the Russian newspaper Izvestia, the Bank of Russia will launch a detailed investigation to examine cryptocurrency investments and lending volumes to companies operating in the digital sector. The monetary institution also plans to analyze “individual investments” in digital financial products whose returns are linked to the price of digital assets.
This likely includes cryptocurrency derivatives and similar financial instruments, many of which were introduced this year on the Moscow Exchange and other Russian trading platforms.
The Russian central bank justifies this audit by citing the need to monitor the “risks and opportunities” that the digital asset sector poses not only to global markets but specifically to the national economy. Bank officials stated that the survey’s goal is to “assess the volume of cryptocurrency investments made by regulated entities, including for risk-hedging purposes.”
In parallel with the general investigation, the Central Bank has ordered the Moscow Exchange and commercial banks offering crypto derivatives to provide monthly reports on transactions and trading volumes.
Clash between the Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance
The decision to conduct this audit comes amid growing tensions between the Central Bank and the Russian Ministry of Finance over digital asset policy. While the ministry is pushing to regulate and tax the industry—bringing it out of the “grey zone”—the bank favors measures that would keep cryptocurrencies at the fringes of Russia’s economic system.
Kirill Karpov, senior lecturer in the Department of Financial Law at the Moscow State University of Law, commented:
“[The bank and the government] will use the information from the survey to help form regulatory policy. They will look to legalize the market to generate tax revenue.”
Sandbox for international trade
Currently, Russian legislation legally recognizes only officially registered Bitcoin miners and participants in the Central Bank’s sandbox project. This “sandbox” allows Russian companies to use cryptocurrencies as a means of payment in cross-border trade transactions. Beyond the sandbox, several companies are believed to be conducting direct commercial exchanges with international partners using cryptocurrencies.
