Russian finance ministry, central bank weigh crypto trading pilot for top-tier investors

Russia mulls experimental cryptocurrency trading for top-tier investors, with a $250,000 minimum asset holding.

Russia is exploring the idea of launching experimental cryptocurrency trading for top-tier investors, a move that would allow a select group to participate in the cryptocurrency market, state-controlled news agency Interfax reports, citing Aleksey Yakovlev, the Ministry of Finance’s financial policy department head.

Per the report, the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Russia are leading talks on the project, which aims to create a safe space for crypto trading. However, the plan is still in its early stages, Yakovlev added without elaborating on the details.

It’s understood that the pilot would be open only for top-tier investors — professional market participants and individual investors — with personal holdings at least at 24 million rubles ($250,000).

While owning crypto is allowed in Russia, using it as a legal tender is banned. Officially, the country has no centralized exchange for cryptocurrencies. This means that individuals can trade crypto only on foreign platforms.

However, as crypto.news reported earlier, Garantex, a crypto exchange sanctioned by the U.S. and the European Union, seems to be one of the largest Russia-based exchanges operating within the Kremlin’s purview. The exchange has offices in Moscow’s Federation Tower and allows deposits and withdrawals in rubles to Russian bank cards, including those from Sberbank, Tinkoff, and Alfa-Bank.