Russian authorities have come close to extending the currency revenue monitoring regime to cryptocurrency operations. Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev, on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum, outlined the department's position: digital currencies should be included in the monitoring perimeter that currently operates under the presidential decree on mandatory sale of export revenue. According to him, the relevant ministry is already preparing corresponding proposals.
This statement is not just a bureaucratic initiative, but a logical continuation of the course toward legalizing and streamlining the crypto market following the adoption of the landmark law on digital currencies. The point is not a return to strict repatriation standards, but rather the creation of a system for tracking flows.
Monitoring instead of mandatory sales
Moiseev explained that the current version of the decree has, in effect, zeroed out exporters' obligations to sell currency revenue. However, the market monitoring mechanism itself has proven effective and, according to the official, should be extended to cryptocurrency as well. He emphasized that there is currently no need to return to non-zero repatriation standards — the market is stable.
The market remains stable, as the official emphasized. He recalled that the decree was introduced in October 2023, when Gazprombank came under sanctions and elements of panic emerged in the market over gas payments.
According to him, all the "scare tactics" have already been exhausted, so he sees no prerequisites for resuming mandatory sales norms. Instead, the focus shifts to transparency and observability of operations.
History of the currency revenue decree
Let me recall the timeline: mandatory repatriation and sale of part of currency revenue was introduced by a presidential decree in October 2023 for a period of six months. The document's effect was extended twice — each time by a year, ultimately remaining in force until April 30, 2026. In June of this year, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov announced the extension of the regime until 2029, but in mid-August the government, by its resolution, reduced the repatriation and sale standards to zero. Previously, the largest exporters were required to credit at least 40% of foreign currency under foreign trade contracts to accounts in authorized banks and sell at least 90% of the credited amount on the domestic market.
The Finance Ministry's initiative fits into the overall logic of developing digital asset regulation. Including cryptocurrency in the monitoring perimeter at a zero sales rate is observational in nature and does not create direct restrictions for market participants. Moiseev directly called such a step logical in the development of regulation.
For now, the department's proposals are at the preparation stage. Specific parameters and timelines for including cryptocurrency in monitoring have not been disclosed — details will depend on the formulations that the Finance Ministry puts forward for discussion.
Expert opinion: This is a signal to the market that the era of "gray" crypto schemes for cross-border settlements is coming to an end. The state is choosing a path of soft control rather than prohibitions, which in the long term could become a driver of legal demand for digital assets from the corporate sector. However, the key question is how monitoring will be technically implemented, since cryptocurrency transactions are decentralized by nature.