Russia Launches Regulated Crypto Trading Framework

Russia launched a regulated cryptocurrency trading framework on September 1, 2026, with the country's largest bank forecasting the new legal market could process up to 4 trillion rubles, approximately $46.43 billion, in its first year. The system allows investors to buy and trade digital assets through licensed intermediaries for the first time, though it is expected to capture only a fraction of the nation's existing crypto activity. Sberbank Deputy Chairman Anatoly Popov shared the first-year volume forecast with the TASS news agency, citing data from the Finance Ministry. He indicated that regulated exchanges are expected to record between 3.