Russia moves to restrict retail crypto trading to bitcoin, ether and USDT

Russia’s central bank will limit retail crypto trading to bitcoin, ether, and USDT on regulated exchanges starting September 1.

Non-qualified investors face a 300,000-ruble (approx. $3,600) annual purchase limit per intermediary, while qualified investors have no cap. The rules add specifics to July legislation, though crypto payments inside Russia remain prohibited under current law.

Russia’s central bank will allow retail investors to only trade bitcoin BTC$64,148.66, ether ETH$1,910.89 and USDT on regulated exchanges, making Tether’s dollar-linked token the only stablecoin on the initial list. The draft rules would limit non-qualified investors to 300,000 rubles (around $3,600) of crypto purchases per year at each intermediary. Qualified investors wouldn’t face the cap.

The whitelist adds detail to legislation passed in July that opens regulated crypto trading from Sept. 1 but did not specify which assets retail investors could buy. Crypto payments inside Russia remain prohibited. The wording sets the 300,000-ruble limit per intermediary rather than across an investor’s total purchases, potentially allowing larger aggregate exposure through multiple brokers or exchanges.

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