Depends, it is legal to mine bitcoin however there is a banking ban. As of November 2016, bitcoins are “not illegal” in accordance to the Federal Tax Service of Russia. Deputy Finance Minister of the Russian Federation Alexei Moiseev mentioned in September 2017 it is “probably illegal” to accept cryptocurrency payments. However, bitcoin market web sites are blocked, and court choices state that bitcoin is a currency surrogate which is outlawed in the territory of the Russian Federation.

From the point of view of the current Russian legislation, cryptocurrency is a monetary substitute. According to article 27 of the Federal Law “On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia)”, the issue of monetary surrogates in the Russian Federation is prohibited.

The Central Bank of Russia and Rosfinmonitoring in their informational appeals have repeatedly warned Russian citizens that all operations with cryptocurrency are speculative and carry a high risk of loss of value. The Central Bank of Russia states that: “Most operations with cryptocurrencies are carried out outside the legal law of both the Russian Federation and most other states. Cryptocurrencies are not guaranteed or provided through the Bank of Russia.”

A bill on digital monetary assets was added in the State Duma on 20 March 2018. It defines cryptocurrency mining as “activities aimed at the creation of cryptocurrency with the reason of receiving compensation in the form of cryptocurrency.” and treats it as an “entrepreneurial activity difficulty to taxation if the miner exceeds the electricity consumption limits mounted by using the authorities for three months in a row.”

In the bill, bitcoins are labeled as property and are not viewed as legal tender. The change of cryptocurrency for rubles and foreign currency is allowed but only through licensed operators. The bill also presents a definition of a smart contract.