The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has officially recognized cryptocurrency as a subject of theft — a new precedent for law enforcement practice.
On June 16, the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation unanimously approved amendments to the 2002 resolution regulating judicial practice in cases of theft, robbery, and banditry. Now, the list of items subject to theft officially includes digital rubles, digital rights, and digital currency. This decision significantly expands the legal framework for qualifying crimes related to the illegal seizure of crypto assets.
A key clarification concerns the moment when the theft of non-cash funds is completed: the crime is considered complete from the moment the money is actually debited from the victim's account. This is an important nuance for investigations, as disputes previously arose about when exactly the corpus delicti occurs—upon gaining access to the account or upon debiting the funds.
When qualifying theft from a bank account or of electronic funds, the court is obliged to recognize exclusively non-cash funds in accounts or electronic money as the object of the crime. This eliminates the possibility of substituting concepts and ensures uniformity in judicial practice.
It is separately noted that if the funds of one victim are stolen through several successive debits, but the actions are united by a single intent, such an act should be considered a single continuing crime. This allows avoiding the fragmentation of episodes and unjustified mitigation of punishment.
The statistics are impressive: annually in Russia, more than 26,000 people are convicted for theft from a bank account or involving electronic funds. The inclusion of cryptocurrencies in this list will inevitably lead to an increase in the number of cases related to digital assets.
This is not the first step by the Supreme Court in regulating the crypto sphere. In June 2023, the Supreme Court recognized the conversion of bitcoins into rubles as money laundering, and in May 2024, it mandated checking the ownership of crypto wallets when considering cases. The current decision logically continues the line of tightening control over the circulation of digital assets.
My analysis: This resolution is a signal for market participants: cryptocurrency has finally ceased to be a "gray area" in the Russian legal field. Now, any illegal seizure of digital assets will be qualified as full-fledged theft with all the ensuing consequences. For investors and traders, this means the need to strengthen security measures and legal protection for their digital portfolios.