- Russia may block unlicensed crypto exchanges this summer that are not registered domestically.
- Russia’s domestic legal crypto framework is expected by July 2026.
Russia could begin a large-scale blocking of crypto exchange and major digital asset platform websites that are not officially registered in Russia as early as this summer. This move would restrict access for Russian users to foreign crypto services operating without local authorization, because of the tightening digital asset market rules.
The Russians currently pay about $15 billion in fees to international cryptocurrency exchanges. So, Sergey Shvetsov, chairman of the supervisory board of the Moscow Exchange, explained that this is a large amount of money leaving the country, as the exchange wants to enter the crypto market and earn those fees itself, which could significantly increase its profits, as per the RBC report.
Russia’s Domestic ‘White Zone’ for Crypto
As the RBC report mentioned, the Belarus-based approach, where only companies under the High-Tech Park can trade crypto, and individuals are barred from foreign exchanges. However, enforcement is limited, as exchanges decide whether to onboard users. Even in Russia, after Binance’s departure, around 1 million Russians are still customers.
Also, the legal advisors noted that foreign exchanges cannot easily be controlled, and a direct ban would be hard to enforce, and probably Russia will combine a regulated white zone for domestic platforms with restricted access to unfriendly foreign exchanges for economic and security reasons.
Russia Expects Domestic Crypto Framework by July 2026
Previously on January, Interfax reported that the rules for the legal operation of Russian crypto exchanges are being developed. In December 2025, an approach for regulating cryptos in Russia was developed by the Central Bank of Russia.
According to the approach, exchanges, brokers, trust managers, and exchange services are the legal channels through which all crypto operations should proceed. These will all need to abide by certain regulations, and crypto purchases by non-professional investors will be permitted, but only up to 300,000 rubles ($3,936) annually through a single middleman.
It also plans that starting from July 1, 2027, companies that operate illegally in the crypto market could face penalties similar to those for illegal banking activity. As per the report, the full legislative framework is expected to be prepared by July 1, 2026.