Russia Proposes Bitcoin, Ether, USDT for Exchange Trading
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- Bank of Russia proposed a list of crypto assets eligible for exchange trading — Bitcoin, Ether, and Tether's USDT — all meeting criteria including market capitalization, average daily trading volume, and at least five years of price history on overseas markets.
- The proposal follows a law signed by President Vladimir Putin on Aug. 4 that grants the Bank of Russia authority to determine which digital currencies can be admitted to organized trading and set related rules.
- Non-qualified investors would be limited to buying 300,000 Russian rubles ($3,650) worth of cryptocurrency per year through each intermediary, including brokers, crypto exchange services, or asset managers.
- Qualified investors would face no purchase limits for crypto assets traded on exchanges or over-the-counter markets, creating a two-tier access system.
- All investors, regardless of status, must pass a test and familiarize themselves with crypto investment risks before making transactions, according to the central bank.
- The public comment period on the proposal runs until Aug. 24, with the Bank of Russia citing the need to protect non-qualified investors from sharp and unpredictable crypto price fluctuations.
Why it matters: Russia is opening a regulated on-ramp for three of the world's largest crypto assets, but the 300,000 ruble ($3,650) annual cap sharply limits retail exposure while qualified investors get unlimited access. The testing requirement and per-intermediary cap mean a Russian saver using two brokers can still only deploy 7,300 rubles (~$92) per month into crypto — a system designed more to formalize a framework than to unlock meaningful market participation.
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