The Russian government has taken a decisive step toward tightening its grip on the digital asset landscape by submitting a new bill to the lower house of parliament. This legislative move aims to amend the national legal code to introduce criminal liability for any entity providing cryptocurrency services without explicit regulatory approval or licensing. The draft law, which was formally presented to the State Duma, targets organizations and individuals involved in the circulation of digital currencies who operate outside the oversight of the Central Bank of Russia. This push for strict compliance signifies a major shift in how the state intends to handle the decentralized nature of digital finance, moving from general observation to aggressive enforcement.Under the proposed guidelines, the penalties for non-compliance are remarkably severe. Individuals found operating unregistered digital currency services could face fines reaching approximately 4,000 dollars alongside potential prison sentences of up to four years. However, the legislation scales up significantly for more complex violations. If the unauthorized activity is carried out by an organized group or results in the extraction of income on a particularly large scale, the punishment increases to mandatory compulsory labor for up to five years or a maximum prison term of seven years. Furthermore, the bill suggests a fine of up to 1 million rubles, which is roughly equivalent to 13,100 dollars, or a penalty equal to the convicted persons income over a five-year duration.This latest draft follows a broader legislative package introduced earlier in the year that focused on penalizing illegal cryptocurrency miners. The current bill expands that scope to include all forms of unregistered digital asset services, effectively mandating that any platform facilitating the trade or exchange of crypto must be fully integrated into the Russian banking regulatory framework. While the government is pushing for rapid adoption of these rules, the countrys Supreme Court has voiced significant reservations. According to local media reports, the court argued that the bill currently lacks a reasoned justification for such harsh criminal penalties. The judiciary labeled the measure as premature, suggesting that such enforcement should only be enacted once the comprehensive Digital Currency and Digital Rights law is fully established, which is anticipated for July.The timing of this legislative crackdown coincides with major disruptions within the local crypto exchange sector. Grinex, a prominent Russia-based exchange already facing international sanctions, was forced to halt all trading operations following a massive security breach. The platform reported a loss of more than 1 billion rubles, estimated at roughly 13.7 million dollars. In its public statement regarding the incident, the exchange suspected that the hack was orchestrated by entities associated with hostile states. The company has since engaged with law enforcement agencies and filed a formal criminal complaint to investigate the digital heist, which has left thousands of users in a state of financial uncertainty.The intersection of these two events highlights the volatile environment surrounding the Russian crypto industry. On one hand, the state is seeking to impose a rigid legal structure to ensure total oversight and prevent financial leakage. On the other hand, the vulnerability of domestic platforms to external cyberattacks underscores the risks inherent in the current unregulated or semi-regulated ecosystem. If the State Duma passes this bill, it will grant the Russian government unprecedented control over the flow of digital assets, effectively ending the era of independent or anonymous crypto operations within its borders. This move toward heavy regulation is expected to force many smaller players out of the market while solidifying the dominance of state-approved financial entities.
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