Russia Deepens Crypto Mining Crackdown With Moscow Ban

Russia has expanded its restrictions on cryptocurrency mining by banning the activity across Moscow, the surrounding Moscow Oblast and designated areas of the Kursk region for more than six years, marking one of the country's most significant interventions in the sector since legalizing industrial mining.

Summary:

Russia will prohibit cryptocurrency mining in Moscow, the Moscow region and parts of Kursk from Aug. 15 through the end of 2032.
The government says the measure is intended to ease pressure on electricity infrastructure in regions facing growing power demand.
The restrictions expand an existing framework that already limits mining in several energy-constrained regions.

Russia formally established a legal framework for industrial cryptocurrency mining in late 2024, allowing registered operators to operate under a regulated licensing regime. The latest decree shows that legalization has been accompanied by increasingly targeted regional restrictions as authorities seek to balance support for the industry with electricity security.

The measure was introduced through Government Resolution No. 936, signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin on July 25 and published on July 31. The restrictions will take effect on Aug. 15, 2026, and remain in force until Dec. 31, 2032.

Unlike previous seasonal limitations, the new rules prohibit both direct cryptocurrency and participation in mining pools throughout the affected territories for the duration of the order.

Key Details of the Decree

Effective date: Aug. 15, 2026
Duration: Through Dec. 31, 2032
Regions affected: Moscow, Moscow Oblast and designated municipalities in the Kursk region
Activities prohibited: Cryptocurrency mining and participation in mining pools
Legal basis: Government Resolution No. 936, signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin

Government Focuses on Electricity Capacity

The decision reflects growing concern over electricity consumption in Russia’s largest population and business center.

According to Russian energy authorities, cryptocurrency mining operations connected to the Moscow power system consume roughly 1 gigawatt of electricity, increasing pressure on networks already serving households, industry and commercial infrastructure.

Official data, shared by TASS, also indicate that the Moscow region hosts approximately 65 data centers with a combined capacity of 734 megawatts, including 19 facilities accounting for around 233 megawatts in the broader metropolitan area.

The restrictions also extend to eight municipal districts and the city of Lgov in Russia’s Kursk region. Although the decree does not provide separate technical justification for those locations, their inclusion suggests authorities identified similar electricity capacity constraints or infrastructure vulnerabilities requiring long-term limits on mining activity.

Rather than introducing a nationwide restriction, authorities have continued targeting regions where power shortages are viewed as the most immediate risk.

Part of a Broader Mining Strategy

The latest decree builds on restrictions previously imposed in several energy-constrained regions, including parts of Siberia, Buryatia and Zabaykalsky Krai.

Instead of reversing Russia’s broader acceptance of industrial cryptocurrency mining, the government appears to be refining where the activity can take place based on regional electricity availability.

That approach allows policymakers to preserve the process as an economic activity while limiting operations in areas where demand for electricity has outpaced available infrastructure.

Mining Capacity May Shift Across Russia

Russia remains one of the world’s largest Bitcoin mining jurisdictions, accounting for an estimated 17.2% of global hash rate.

The new restrictions are therefore unlikely to remove Russian miners from the global network altogether. Instead, they are expected to encourage operators to relocate capacity toward regions with surplus electricity or lower regulatory constraints.

For the broader Bitcoin network, any immediate effect is likely to come from the timing of miners’ relocation rather than from a lasting reduction in Russia’s contribution to global hash power.

The information presented in this article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial, investment, or trading advice. Coinspress.com does not promote or advocate for any particular investment strategy, asset, or cryptocurrency project. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile and unpredictable – always perform your own research and seek guidance from a qualified financial professional before making any investment decisions.

Author

Alexander Stefanov

Reporter at CoinsPress

Alex is Editor-in-Chief of Coinspress and co-founder of Millennial Media Group, with nearly a decade of experience covering financial markets - crypto first, then everything else. It started in 2016 with Bitcoin. Like most people at the time, he didn't fully understand it - so he kept digging. Blockchain, tokenomics, the projects, the cycles. That curiosity never stopped, and eventually pulled him into traditional markets too: equities, commodities, macro. Not because he left crypto behind, but because you can't properly understand one without the other. What drives him is straightforward: he wants to know why something is happening, not just that it's happening. Most market coverage stops at the headline - price up, price down, here's a chart. Alex finds that kind of reporting actively unhelpful. If you walk away from an article without understanding the mechanism behind the move, what did you actually learn? He holds a degree in Tourism from New Bulgarian University - not the most obvious path into financial markets, but markets have a way of pulling in people who are simply too curious to stay out. He has authored over 200 in-depth analyses and more than 10,000 articles across crypto and traditional finance. He still thinks every day in markets teaches him something new. That's probably why he hasn't stopped.