Bank of Russia proposes 1% cap on bank crypto exposure
Draft rules add two new ratios, a 1,250% risk weight on direct holdings and action after six breaches in 30 days, with reporting from January 2027.
The Bank of Russia wants to stop the country's lenders from taking on too much crypto risk. Under draft rules it has just published, a bank's exposure to crypto-assets could not exceed 1% of its capital.
The draft creates two new maximum-risk ratios. N31 would apply to individual credit institutions, and N32 to banking groups on a consolidated basis.
How the rules would work
- A 1,250% risk weight would cover direct crypto holdings, derivatives linked to crypto and loans secured against crypto. At that weight, every rouble of exposure effectively needs a rouble of capital behind it.
- A 50% risk weight would apply to certain lower-risk client positions excluded from the full weighting. Some positions could also be offset against each other.
- Daily compliance: banks would have to stay under the 1% limit on every operating day.
- Enforcement trigger: six or more breaches within 30 consecutive days would bring action from the central bank.
- Timing: banks would start reporting N31 and N32 in January 2027. The final regulation is expected in Q4 2026 and would take effect ten days after publication.
Why the rules are coming now
Russia's regulated cryptocurrency framework came into force on 1 September 2026, about three weeks before the draft appeared. Banks are already getting ready to offer crypto trading to eligible customers. Sberbank is aiming for a 1 December launch, and Alfa Bank is preparing a service too. The central bank is putting capital safeguards in place before that business grows.
A familiar global standard
The 1,250% figure is not a Russian invention. It matches the treatment the Basel Committee sets for unbacked crypto-assets in its global banking standard. Russia is opening the door to crypto trading through banks while following the international rulebook on capital.
Why Indian readers should watch
India still has no comprehensive crypto framework, and policymakers here are still debating what one should look like. Russia's approach, which allows banks to offer crypto trading but under strict capital limits, is the kind of model that is likely to feed into that debate.
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