The deadline for the crypto law in Russia is being postponed: situation analysis and forecasts
The anticipated adoption of Bill No. 1194918-8 "On Digital Currency and Digital Rights" is not meeting the established timeline. Despite successfully passing the first reading on April 21, the document will not be approved by the initially planned deadline of July 1. This information has been officially confirmed by representatives of the Ministry of Finance.
Alexei Yakovlev, Director of the Financial Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance, stated on the sidelines of the PMYUF-2026 forum that the document is generally ready, but the procedure is being delayed. According to him, the second reading will take place after a meeting of the relevant State Duma committee, but it is unlikely that the law will be passed before July 1. The estimated timeframe is "around that time," meaning late July or early August.
What the Bill Provides
The document establishes the basic legal framework for the circulation of virtual currencies within the country. Individuals and legal entities will have the right to officially acquire digital coins, but exclusively through certified intermediaries. The list of authorized operators will include:
- Specialized exchange services from the Central Bank's registry;
- Licensed brokers;
- Official trust managers.
At the same time, the use of tokens to pay for goods or services within the state will remain strictly prohibited.
The Central Bank initially planned to launch the new rules on July 1 and prepare the accompanying by-laws during the third quarter. The first fully legal transactions were supposed to take place in the last quarter of the year. These deadlines are now being pushed back.
The Market Anticipated the Delay
Information about the schedule shift had been circulating in the professional community long before the official comments from the Ministry of Finance. For instance, Sergei Mendeleev, founder of the Exved platform, noted in his blog on June 22 that the discussion of the crypto initiative had been quietly removed from the parliamentary committee's work plan, even though a meeting was scheduled for the next day.
The expert believes it would be advisable to return the document to the first reading stage. It would be more logical to entrust the revisions to the new composition of deputies during the autumn session. Otherwise, Mendeleev concludes, the industry will face the same old problems that previously arose during the legalization of miners' activities. It is worth recalling that Mendeleev participated in discussions of future regulatory rules and repeatedly pointed out that the bill's authors ignored proposals from experienced representatives of the crypto industry.
Analyst's Comment: The delay in adopting the law is not so much a technical problem as it is a symptom of a deeper systemic disagreement between regulators and market participants. Ignoring expert recommendations during the drafting stage could result in the adopted law containing non-functional norms, which would ultimately only slow down the legalization of the industry and push businesses to seek gray schemes.