Russia just did something that would have been unthinkable two years ago. The country that once floated an outright ban on cryptocurrency trading and mining is now rolling out a framework that lets retail investors buy digital assets through regulated channels.
The Central Bank of Russia’s new regulatory approach allows non-qualified investors to purchase select tokens, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT, through licensed intermediaries. There’s a catch, though: annual purchases are capped at 300,000 rubles, roughly $4,000, per intermediary. And using any of those tokens to actually buy things in Russia? Still completely banned.
How the framework works
The system splits investors into two tiers. Retail investors get access to a narrow menu of approved tokens with that $4,000 annual spending cap per intermediary. Before they can trade, they must pass a mandatory risk-awareness test.
Qualified investors face fewer restrictions. They have no volume caps on purchases but are still required to complete the same risk awareness testing.
