A top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged the inclusion of cryptocurrency in the country's balance of payments calculations. Maxim Oreshkin highlighted crypto's role in imports and exports, describing mining as an undervalued export sector. This push comes amid Russia's efforts to regulate crypto for cross-border trade.
Maxim Oreshkin, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office, stated that cryptocurrency should be accounted for in Russia's balance of payments, which track economic transactions with overseas nations. "Cryptocurrency is a form of money supply," Oreshkin said, noting that Russian firms use it to pay for imports, impacting the fiat currency market. He explained that crypto settlements occur outside conventional channels, so they are currently not included in these calculations.
Oreshkin praised Russia's crypto mining industry as a "new and undervalued export item." According to data from Luxor Technology, Russia holds nearly 16% of the global Bitcoin hashrate, second only to the United States. Putin appointed Oreshkin, formerly the Minister for Economic Development, as his top economic adviser in January 2020.
Industry experts echoed these views. Oleg Ogienko, CEO of Moscow-based blockchain consultant Via Numeri, told Vedomosti that crypto mining "already plays a significant role in Russia’s economy," with firms on track to mine tens of thousands of Bitcoin tokens this year. Investments in data centers, grid connections, power generation, and mining hardware may exceed $1.3 billion, Ogienko added.
Sergey Bezdelov, head of the Industrial Mining Association, reported that Russian firms mined 55,000 Bitcoin in 2023 but only 35,000 in 2024, attributing the decline to the Bitcoin halving in April 2024. Mikhail Brezhnev, co-founder of mining firm 51ASIC, estimated daily mining revenues at roughly $12.9 million.
This advocacy aligns with recent regulatory moves. In late October, Russia's central bank and Ministry of Finance agreed to legalize cryptocurrency payments for foreign economic activity. The central bank also runs an experimental legal regime, or sandbox, for firms using crypto in cross-border payments, with operations kept confidential to shield participants from sanctions.