P2P cryptocurrency transfers to be banned in Russia

The Central Bank of Russia has published amendments to the cryptocurrency law, stating that trading digital currencies between individuals in the country will be banned starting July 1, 2027. The ban will also cover withdrawals to one's own non-custodial wallets, including hardware ones.

This has raised questions in the poker community about what the consequences of carrying out P2P transactions after July 1 might be. Will people be fined or even jailed for it? We hasten to reassure you — at least for now, no administrative or criminal liability is provided for such transactions.

Meanwhile, the State Duma is reviewing a bill in its second reading that introduces liability for cryptocurrency mining or for providing mining infrastructure operator services without the appropriate license. It proposes penalties in the form of fines of up to 2.5 million rubles or imprisonment for up to 5 years.

In a conversation with Pokerflow, Vasily, an analyst at Prime Traders, explained the rationale behind the P2P ban:

"The authorities most likely want to create some kind of controlled gateway of their own. By depositing money through it, users will be declaring it, essentially making it visible to everyone. And if there's a profit, it will also have to be withdrawn through this gateway. And at any moment the authorities can ask you to account for those funds."

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