Russian crypto wallets may be brought out of the shadows — and forced to disclose them to the tax authorities. Silence will result in fines of up to 20 thousand rubles, even if the wallet is just lying idle.
The reason is a new cryptocurrency bill that was introduced in the State Duma in April. It proposes to oblige citizens to report on crypto wallets and accounts on foreign exchanges, as well as report on transactions. Moreover, the wording is such that "zero activity" will not save you — the very fact of having one is already a reason for notification.
The logic is simple: similar rules now apply to foreign bank accounts — failure to report is punishable by a fine of 5 thousand rubles, and in case of recurrence — up to 20 thousand. According to experts, cryptocurrency assets will be brought under the same scheme.
But the main question is control. It will not be possible to reach foreign exchanges quickly: this requires changes in regulation and agreements with other countries. Data exchange may really work only with "friendly" platforms, and the rest of the crypto infrastructure will remain in the gray area for a long time.
Nevertheless, the loophole may close from the other side. If they start monitoring the withdrawal of cryptocurrencies through fiat money within Russia, the chain will become transparent. And then it will no longer be possible to "not report" — the wallet will simply be calculated by transactions.
