Russia's central bank clears crypto exchange trading from November 22

The Bank of Russia established a legal framework permitting exchange cryptocurrency trading from November 22, 2026, subject to individual regulatory approval of trading rules. Retail investors gain access on November 17 to Bitcoin, Ether, and USDT with a 300,000-ruble annual cap after mandatory testing. Moscow Exchange and Sberbank target December 1 launches, but transactions face friction as major domestic clearing entities remain under U.S. sanctions and issuers retain token-freezing powers.

Bank of Russia crypto exchange trading regulations

• ▪Russia's Federal Law No. 282-FZ, which took effect September 1, 2026, created the legal framework for licensing crypto exchanges while continuing to prohibit domestic payments for goods and services using cryptocurrency
• ▪The Bank of Russia issued an ordinance taking effect November 22, 2026, allowing exchanges to begin organized cryptocurrency trading once the central bank approves their specific trading rules
• ▪Cryptocurrency transactions conducted on regulated Russian exchanges are designed to clear on the same day through Russia's National Clearing Centre
• ▪Crypto exchanges conducting trading in Russia must register participating brokers and managers, maintain registers of orders, and report price metrics to the Bank of Russia

Rules for non-qualified retail crypto investors

• ▪A Bank of Russia framework taking effect November 17, 2026, permits non-qualified retail investors to buy Bitcoin, Ether, and USDT through registered intermediaries up to an annual limit of 300,000 rubles
• ▪To be eligible for retail purchase in Russia, a cryptocurrency must meet specific market capitalization and trading volume thresholds, alongside at least five years of pricing history on foreign exchanges
• ▪Non-qualified retail investors in Russia must pass a knowledge assessment test and review a risk disclosure document before buying permitted cryptocurrencies

Russian crypto exchange infrastructure

• ▪The number of registered cryptocurrency exchange service providers in Russia increased from 4 to 17 between early October and late October 2026
• ▪Russian officials worked during autumn 2026 to set up a self-regulatory body for cryptocurrency exchanges and digital depositories

Russian exchanges preparing crypto trading launches

• ▪Moscow Exchange plans to launch a pilot program for trading Bitcoin, Ether, and USDT on December 1, 2026, utilizing its existing stock-market execution systems
• ▪St. Petersburg's SPB Exchange intends to launch organized cryptocurrency trading by the end of 2026 using its own digital settlement depository

Moscow Exchange operations and sanctions

• ▪Moscow Exchange senior managing director Boris Blokhin stated in early October 2026 that the exchange would use a partner digital depository for settlement
• ▪The U.S. Department of the Treasury designated Moscow Exchange and its National Clearing Centre under sanctions in June 2024, following full U.S. sanctions imposed on Sberbank in April 2022

Tether stablecoin freezing and technical risks

• ▪Tether froze $23 million of USDT associated with sanctioned Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex in March 2025 while helping the U.S. Secret Service
• ▪PSB chairman Petr Fradkov publicly warned in August 2026 that stablecoin issuer Tether maintains technical mechanisms capable of blocking tokens at specific wallet addresses

Offshore exchange restrictions

• ▪KuCoin was the third major cryptocurrency exchange within a two-week period to restrict users based in Russia and Belarus
• ▪Foreign cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin implemented restrictions on users based in Russia and Belarus in late October 2026