The Bank of Russia is launching a total deanonymization of the crypto market: new KYC and Travel Rule regulations.
The Russian crypto market is preparing for radical changes: the Bank of Russia plans to transfer data from its anti-money laundering database to digital depositories and brokers. This involves the "Know Your Customer" platform (an analogue of international KYC). Now, digital asset operators will have to conduct deep user identification and accompany transactions according to the Travel Rule regulations.
Advisor to the Director of Rosfinmonitoring, Vlada Korchagina, revealed details of the new system at the "Digital Assets in Russia" forum. The regulator intends to send ready-made compliance ratings for legal entities to operators, forming them on the KYC platform side. Upon receiving negative information, depositories will be obliged to impose strict restrictions against suspicious counterparties.
New Verification Rules: Full Transparency
All new participants in the crypto market will face a full identification procedure. For corporate clients, this means collecting detailed data about the organization, its legal representatives, beneficiaries, and ultimate beneficial owners. Traditional brokers and management companies can still collect a limited package of documents, but when attempting to invest in digital currencies, they will have to conduct full verification.
Lawmakers have provided concessions: depositories and crypto exchanges will be allowed to delegate verification to third-party financial institutions, such as commercial banks or professional securities market participants. However, at the slightest suspicion about the legality of an investor's income, the company will be able to refuse to open a digital account with justification.
Five New Types of Control and the Travel Rule
Bill No. 1194918-8, adopted by the State Duma in the first reading on April 21, establishes five new types of transactions with crypto assets and digital rights subject to strict control. Financial organizations are obliged to promptly inform Rosfinmonitoring of any transactions amounting to 1 million rubles or more.
Special attention is given to the international Travel Rule developed by the FATF. Now, when transferring cryptocurrency, the intermediary must transmit personal data about the sender and recipient along with the payment. In traditional banking, this information is transmitted automatically, but in blockchain networks, wallet addresses are initially completely anonymous.
From July 1, 2026, if the law is adopted, citizens and companies will be able to legally purchase cryptocurrency through licensed intermediaries from the Central Bank's register. For non-qualified investors, a limit of 300 thousand rubles per year through an intermediary will be set for a limited list of assets — it is expected to include Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT, and USDC. Qualified investors will have access to any cryptocurrencies except anonymous ones. Internal settlements in cryptocurrency will remain prohibited, and non-custodial storage within the Russian perimeter is not yet regulated.
Cryptalist Analytics: This step is a logical continuation of the global trend towards regulating the crypto market. However, the introduction of the Travel Rule in Russian realities could lead to a significant outflow of users to unregulated P2P platforms and decentralized exchanges. The key question is how effectively the compliance rating system will work and whether it will lead to excessive regulation that stifles innovation and forces projects to move to jurisdictions with a more flexible approach.