Russia Defers Crypto Exchange Prison Bill Until After September Duma Elections

Election delay pushes bill into autumn

The bill’s second and third readings have been deferred until after the election period ends on September 20. That means the next realistic opportunity for lawmakers to advance the measure is the autumn session of the newly elected Duma.

According to Anatoly Aksakov, who heads the Duma Committee on Financial Markets, lawmakers have not yet resolved questions over how the penalties should be calibrated. That issue appears to be one of the reasons the legislation was not moved forward before the vote.

What the proposal would criminalize

The draft law is aimed at what it describes as the illegal organization of cryptocurrency circulation. In practice, that would mean crypto exchange activity could be carried out only by entities that are registered and licensed by the Central Bank. Activity outside that framework would be treated as illegal.

The bill lays out several tiers of punishment depending on the scale of the alleged offense. Operating an unlicensed crypto exchange could bring fines of 100,000 to 300,000 rubles, or an equivalent amount based on income, with a prison term of up to four years as an alternative. If the activity is conducted by an organized group or involves proceeds exceeding 3.5 million rubles, the penalty could rise to up to five years in prison and fines of as much as one million rubles. For what the bill defines as large-scale illegal circulation, the maximum sentence would be seven years.

The proposed rules are not scheduled to take effect immediately. The legislation sets July 1, 2027 as the start date for penalties, a delay intended to give the industry time to adapt.

Questions over P2P trading

One of the main unresolved issues is how the bill would apply to peer-to-peer crypto transactions between ordinary users. Under the current framework, Russians would generally be able to buy and sell digital assets only through licensed entities. That has raised debate over whether direct trades between individuals outside approved infrastructure could also fall under criminal liability.

The source material indicates that this point remains under discussion. While the broader approach mirrors existing rules used against unlicensed financial activity, the exact treatment of P2P transactions has not been finalized.

Broader crypto legislation still unsettled

The delayed prison bill is not the only Russian crypto measure facing uncertainty. A separate draft law on Digital Currency and Digital Rights, which would expand state control over crypto transactions, also remains unresolved around the election period.

Together, the two bills point to a wider effort to place cryptocurrency activity within a more tightly controlled regulatory structure. For now, however, the criminal penalties bill remains unfinished, with its next stage pushed to the post-election legislature and key questions about enforcement still open.