The Bank of Russia has published draft capital adequacy rules that allow licensed brokers and forex dealers to include digital currencies in regulatory capital calculations, but only under strict conditions and with significant limitations. The draft instruction, issued on 14 August, permits firms to count digital assets toward own funds up to a maximum of 25 percent of qualifying capital, provided those assets are approved for organised trading on Russian exchanges and held with Russian digital depositaries. Currently only Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT meet these criteria.
The rules impose harsh treatment for non-approved cryptocurrencies. Any digital currency not admitted to organised trading must be deducted from capital entirely rather than recognised as an asset. These unlisted holdings also carry a 100 percent risk weighting, reflecting the assumption they could lose all value. Even for approved cryptocurrencies, holdings exceeding 25 percent of capital trigger a concentration penalty whereby the excess amount is deducted from the adequacy ratio calculation.
The draft forms part of accelerated regulatory development following Federal Law 282-FZ, signed in early August, which establishes licensing frameworks for digital currency exchanges and custodians. Most provisions become effective from September 2026, with licensing requirements for exchange and custody operators following in July 2027. The central bank previously authorised forex dealers to offer crypto CFDs to qualified investors under a standard approved in July.
FXnCO Insight
Russian brokers planning balance sheet crypto exposure should prepare for a binary regulatory regime that rewards conformity to domestic infrastructure while penalising any deviation with immediate capital elimination.
Source: Finance Magnates