russia

According to Jinshi, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced the release of counter-terrorism sanctions, targeting relevant entities in Russia and Iran.

According to Jinshi reports, Russian President Putin stated that based on macroeconomic indicators, the key interest rate should be lowered.

According to Bali Discovery, a 41-year-old Russian man was kidnapped in Bali and forced to hand over his cryptocurrency account. The man was stopped while riding his motorcycle after work by a black Nissan Serena, where two masked assailants handcuffed him with plastic handcuffs, blindfolded him, and took him to a two-story house.The man was held captive for about 30 hours, during which he was subjected to violent treatment, including punches and kicks. The assailants forced him to give up his cryptocurrency account password, stole his phone, and used the villa keys taken from his motorcycle to enter his residence and take his second phone, further gaining access to his accounts.Around 4 a.m. on July 4, the man was dumped near Udayana University Hospital in Jimbaran and received treatment. Bali police spokesman Ariasandy confirmed that a report had been received and that they are making every effort to apprehend the suspects.

According to Bits.media, a new draft bill submitted by the Russian government aims to grant the Financial Supervisory Authority the power to monitor all cryptocurrency transactions. For cryptocurrency transactions exceeding 60,000 rubles and foreign trade cryptocurrency transactions exceeding 1,000,000 rubles, the agency will collect complete information such as the full names or corporate names of the payer and payee, wallet addresses, actual addresses, birth dates, and taxpayer identification numbers. Transactions below 60,000 rubles only require the provision of names and wallet addresses.The bill also stipulates that the new limit for digital asset transactions by banks is 1% of the bank group's capital, and banks must hold corresponding funds to cover risks for the purchased cryptocurrencies. The central bank will be authorized to restrict or prohibit specific cryptocurrency operations when they threaten investor interests or may "undermine the stability of the financial system," with the scope extending from non-bank financial institutions to banks. The bill is expected to take effect simultaneously with the main cryptocurrency regulatory legislation, originally scheduled for implementation on July 1, but the review has been postponed. The first deputy governor recently stated that the relevant laws may take effect on September 1.

According to Bits.media, Russia's largest private bank, Alfa-Bank, has announced plans to become a digital custodian and provide cryptocurrency-related services, not only for its own clients but also for other legal entities. Dmitry Vitman, the bank's Chief Operating Officer, stated that the bank aims to create investment tools based on open blockchain to attract foreign investors and develop proprietary products and tools that can compete in the international market.He anticipates that after the government cryptocurrency regulatory bill comes into effect, Russia may see retail brokerage services emerge between the end of 2026 and early 2027, involving both Russian and foreign infrastructure, but large-scale liquidity is not expected until at least the end of 2027. Digital custodians are regulated entities responsible under Russian law for monitoring all client cryptocurrency transactions and freezing transfers to addresses not approved by the state.

According to Bits.media, the Financial Market Committee of the Russian State Duma has approved the final version of the government's cryptocurrency regulation bill, which will be submitted for a second reading. Committee Chairman Anatoly Aksakov revealed that the second reading version made several key adjustments: the requirement to mandatory declare cryptocurrency wallet addresses has been removed, and instead, only balances and transaction flows need to be declared to protect residents from the risk of sensitive information leakage; a new amendment allows for the legal purchase of securities in the securities market and Russian digital financial assets using cryptocurrency.In the future, it may be allowed for Russian licensed brokers and asset managers to trade on foreign cryptocurrency exchanges, but they must meet additional requirements such as the "friendliness" of the jurisdiction. For non-professional investors, the annual limit through a single intermediary is set at 300,000 rubles, and it is limited to "the most liquid cryptocurrencies." The bill also introduces a two-day freeze on large transfers to foreign and third parties. Aksakov did not clarify whether the proposal to prohibit Russians from using non-custodial cryptocurrency wallets would be retained.

According to CoinDesk, Russia's largest bank Sberbank plans to launch a cryptocurrency wallet and digital custody service before December, provided that the "Digital Currency and Digital Rights Bill" officially takes effect in September. This service will be integrated into the "Sberbank Online" and "SberInvestments" apps, providing customers with access to authorized crypto assets within the banking system.The new law will establish a licensing framework for crypto trading, custody, fiat currency exchange, and cross-border settlements, with a trading limit of approximately 300,000 rubles (about $3,800) per year for non-qualified investors. Other large banks, including VTB and T-Bank, are also preparing related digital custody services.

According to Cointelegraph, Elvira Nabiullina, the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, confirmed that the digital ruble will be launched as scheduled on September 1, and everything is "ready." The digital ruble will serve as a supplement to the Russian fiat ruble and will initially be accepted by financial and credit institutions. The development of this CBDC began in 2021, and the European Union has implemented preemptive sanctions on the digital ruble effective April 2025 in response to Russia's war against Ukraine. Vladimir Chistyukhin, the First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, stated that the laws related to the digital ruble will take effect on September 1, with a transition period until July 2027.In contrast, the U.S. housing bill containing a CBDC ban has been submitted to Trump, and if the president does not sign it within 10 days, it will automatically take effect, with the ban lasting until 2030.

According to TASS, Vladimir Chistyukhin, the First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, stated that the law regarding cryptocurrency regulation may officially take effect on September 1, 2026. He also clarified that a transition period will be set until July 1, 2027.During this period, market participants need to prepare documents, apply for registration in the regulatory directory, obtain new licenses, and adjust internal processes, with formal operations expected to begin from late 2026 to early 2027. From July 1, 2027, the relevant criminal and administrative liability provisions will take effect, strictly distinguishing between legal and illegal cryptocurrency operations by clarifying legal responsibilities.

According to Jinshi, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell stated that today he will propose sanctions against more entities supporting the Russian military industry in response to Russia's attacks on Ukraine.

According to Jinshi News, the president of the Russian Federation Savings Bank stated that the key interest rate needs to be lowered.

According to a report by the Russian TASS agency, the Russian Ministry of Energy has drafted a government decree proposal to prohibit cryptocurrency mining in certain areas of Moscow, Moscow Oblast, and Kursk Oblast (including 8 urban districts such as Belovsky, Suja, and the city of Lgov) from July 1, 2026, to December 31, 2032.Previously, the Russian government had implemented mining bans in several regions, including Buryatia, Transbaikal, and the North Caucasus, with the scope of restrictions continuously expanding. Currently, Moscow and Moscow Oblast have connected to 65 data centers, with a total installed capacity of 734 megawatts.

According to Bits.media, the Central Bank of Russia announced that it will provide economic incentives to encourage the use of the digital ruble for salary payments. Starting from January 1, 2027, commercial banks will receive a reward of 0.67 rubles for each transaction where a business pays salaries or other labor contract payments to employees in digital rubles, with a minimum reward of 10 rubles per instruction list. According to the central bank's design, if a business pays salaries in digital rubles to 10 employees, the bank will receive a reward of 6.7 rubles, and the central bank will make up the difference to the minimum of 10 rubles; if it involves 20 people, the reward will be 13.4 rubles.At the same time, the country's central bank also approved the service fee rates for the digital ruble platform. Starting from early 2027, the transaction fee for each instruction when businesses transfer to individuals will be 1 ruble, with a minimum charge of 15 rubles per instruction list. Previously, the central bank's governor Nabiullina stated that the digital ruble aims to achieve national monitoring of fund operations for government procurement contracts, while denying that the government will monitor payments between individuals and promising that the digital ruble will not be mandatory.

According to Jinshi reports, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov stated that the sanctions during the Biden administration have been extended, and new sanctions measures have been introduced. In addition, the United States is selling weapons to Europe for use in Ukraine.

According to the "Мошеловка" platform, scammers impersonate authorized brokers of the Moscow Exchange through social media, luring users to click phishing links under the pretext of "testing cryptocurrency trading channels," resulting in theft of funds and information. The Moscow Exchange emphasizes that all official trading must be conducted through licensed brokers, and there are no exclusive cryptocurrency purchasing channels for ordinary users.According to data from the Russian IT company "Shard," in 2025, Russian users are expected to lose approximately 234 million rubles due to cryptocurrency phishing, accounting for 62% of the total losses in cryptocurrency assets that year.

According to Jinshi reports, Ukrainian President Zelensky warned that Russia is about to launch a large-scale attack on Ukraine.

According to Cryptopolitan, Ivan Chebeskov, Deputy Minister of Finance of Russia, stated that USDC will be included in the list of approved cryptocurrencies for trading in Russia, alongside USDT, Bitcoin, and Ethereum. Previously, the Central Bank of Russia had indicated that no more tokens would be added, but Chebeskov revealed that USDC will also be approved. Non-professional investors can only invest in eligible crypto assets, specifically cryptocurrencies with an average market capitalization exceeding 5 trillion rubles (approximately 7 billion USD) over the past two years.Chebeskov also mentioned that small fiat stablecoins from friendly jurisdictions may also be allowed, including ruble stablecoins and UAE dirham stablecoins. The Russian cryptocurrency regulatory bill must be passed by July 1, and non-professional investors will gain legal access to cryptocurrencies for the first time, but with an annual investment limit of 300,000 rubles (approximately 4,000 USD).

According to Bits.media, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas stated that the EU plans to restrict 11 cryptocurrency platforms in the 21st round of sanctions, claiming that these platforms assist Russian authorities and businesses in evading international sanctions. The new measures will also tighten the ban on providing cryptocurrency-related services to third countries, expand the sanctions list, and prohibit transactions with these 11 cryptocurrency platforms, although the names of the platforms have not been disclosed.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated that the new sanctions aim to increase pressure on the structures that help Russia maintain international financial channels. In addition, the new sanctions will involve about 90 Russian banks, of which 31 may face a complete trading ban. The EU has already imposed sanctions on cryptocurrency transfer and exchange service providers registered in Russia in the 20th round of sanctions, which took effect on May 24.