Russia's Crypto Crackdown: National Registry Targets Illegal Miners

Russia is pulling out all the stops in its war against rogue crypto miners, rolling out a national registry of mining gear to smoke out those flying under the radar.

Word on the street is that Russian authorities have already pieced together this registry and blasted it out to hotspots buzzing with mining action.

This isn't a solo mission. The Ministry of Energy, Federal Tax Service, and Ministry of Digital Development are teaming up to legalize the wild west of crypto and slash unauthorized energy guzzling.

Deputy Energy Minister Petr Konyushenko is dropping truth bombs, saying the registry will help the government pinpoint who's sucking up electricity for mining. He's adamant that miners need to be under the regulatory microscope and taxed according to their actual power usage.

Konyushenko's not messing around. He's confirmed that the list is already in the hands of regions cranking out high mining activity. Plans for this registry have been cooking since early 2025.

The Ministry of Energy kicked off the plan in February, and the Ministry of Industry and Trade quickly jumped on board, giving it the official thumbs up.

But it's not just about tracking miners. The registry is also set to beef up enforcement in areas where mining is a no-go due to power shortages. Since November, Russia's banned mining in ten regions until March 2031 to keep the lights on during peak demand.

This registry is a key piece of Russia's grand plan for crypto mining, which they locked in back in 2023. The law gives the green light to Russian citizens, registered entrepreneurs, and legal entities to mine away.

While individuals can mine without red tape if they keep their energy use in check, businesses and solo operators need to get cozy with the Federal Tax Service.

Russia's pulling out all the stops to make the crypto scene legit. They've axed VAT on crypto buys to keep things clear and slapped a 15% tax on mining profits, based on the market value of those sweet, sweet mined assets.

Yet, despite all this, a ton of miners are still dodging the law, often sneaking onto residential power grids to duck those pesky commercial rates. As of June 2025, only 30% of miners have played by the rules and registered with the FNS, according to Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov.

Chebeskov's not giving up. He's working to reel in the other 70% and make them play nice, but he's keeping his cards close to the chest on how and when.

Russia Cracks Down on Illegal Mining

Over the past year, Russia's been on a mission to clamp down on those shady operations, hitting them with targeted raids and court-ordered shutdowns.

In one of the biggest busts so far, prosecutors took down an open-air mining site in Krasnoyarsk Krai. This bad boy was squatting on state-owned land with fake papers, sprawled over 30,000 square metres, and raking in around 4.6 million rubles ($58,000) a month.

But that's not all. Officials are also spilling the beans on utility workers taking kickbacks to turn a blind eye to illegal hookups and hackers hijacking smart home gadgets to build their secret mining empires.