Russia’s sweeping crypto mining regulations took effect Nov. 1, transforming the industry with strict energy caps, mandatory registration, and stringent oversight.

Russia’s Crypto Law Takes Effect, Sparking Changes in Energy and Oversight

On Nov. 1, the Russian government introduced a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency mining, marking the implementation of a law signed by President Vladimir Putin in August and published shortly before these rules took effect.

The law formally defines mining as a legal activity in Russia, laying out security and operational requirements for miners and creating a structure for trading digital financial assets on specially approved platforms. This framework aims to bring clarity and oversight to Russia’s growing cryptocurrency sector amid rising energy demands and concerns over illicit mining activities.

According to the new regulations, only registered organizations and individual entrepreneurs may engage in cryptocurrency mining legally. However, individual Russians who are not officially registered as entrepreneurs can also mine but are restricted to a monthly electricity consumption limit of 6,000 kWh. Should they exceed this cap, they would need to register as entrepreneurs to continue their mining activities. This approach ensures that smaller, personal mining operations remain permissible while imposing more stringent requirements on larger, potentially commercial operations.

The regulations also establish detailed reporting obligations for miners, requiring them to disclose the total amount of digital currency mined and provide an address identifier for each transaction to the Federal Tax Service (FTS). This information will only be accessible to law enforcement agencies, ensuring a measure of privacy while enabling oversight. Furthermore, miners must ensure their operations meet standards for reliability, security, and power stability, mitigating risks to local power grids.

To enhance transparency, the government will maintain a registry of miners and operators of mining infrastructure. This information will be accessible to government agencies, the Bank of Russia, and regional power authorities. The government may impose mining restrictions in regions vulnerable to power shortages, with restrictions determined by the Commission for Electric Power Development based on input from the Ministry of Energy or local authorities. This week, Russian Deputy Energy Minister Yevgeny Grabchak revealed plans to ban cryptocurrency mining in certain Russian regions facing power shortages, including the Far East, southwestern Siberia, and the South. Speaking at the RBC Tech forum in Moscow, he emphasized that these areas cannot support high energy demands for mining through 2030.