Russia civic chamber proposes dedicated fund for confiscated crypto assets

Published

4 months ago

March 20, 2025

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Russia civic chamber proposes dedicated fund for confiscated crypto assets

Amid the growing adoption of cryptocurrency reserves in countries like the United States, legal activists in Russia are pushing to create a potential crypto fund.

Evgeny Masharov, a member of the Russian Civic Chamber, has proposed creating a government cryptocurrency fund that would include assets confiscated from criminal proceedings.

The projected cryptocurrency fund would aim for revenues for the government, targeting social projects, Masharov said, according to a March 20 report by the local news agency TASS.

“The proceeds from the cryptocurrency fund can then be used for social, environmental and educational projects,” he reportedly stated.

“Seized crypto should benefit the state”

Masharov’s proposal came amid Russian officials progressing with new legislation on recognizing cryptocurrencies as property for the purposes of criminal procedure legislation.

Alexander Bastrykin, Chairman of Russia’s Investigative Committee, said that a related draft bill was sent to the government for consideration, the local news agency RBC reported on March 19.

“Cryptocurrencies confiscated as part of criminal proceedings must work for the benefit of the state,” Masharov said while commenting on the proposed legislation.

“For these purposes, a special fund can be created, putting cryptocurrencies on its balance,” Masharov said, expressing confidence that many of the seized crypto assets could see their market capitalization “rising significantly over time.”

Russian authorities have been seizing crypto assets for years

Masharov’s proposal to turn confiscated crypto assets for the benefit of the state follows years of the development of related legislation in Russia.

Russian prosecutors have been pushing legal initiatives to allow the government to seize crypto obtained from criminal activity since at least 2021, but there has not been a clear framework set in place.

In the meantime, the Russian government has not missed the opportunity to confiscate millions in cryptocurrency from illegal cases, sometimes involving law enforcement officials. Apparently, Russia’s current laws do not provide standards on where and how such funds should be distributed.

Bank of Russia governor is against crypto investment

The idea of a potential social crypto fund in Russia may sound similar to initiatives like a Bitcoin (BTC) strategic reserve, which currently targets holding confiscated BTC exclusively.

In the meantime, Russia’s central bank governor, Elvira Nabiullina, has previously strongly opposed the idea of potential investments in crypto by the Bank of Russia.

“Cryptocurrency investment doesn’t make any sense for the Central Bank in terms of preserving value since it’s a very volatile asset,” Nabiullina reportedly said in December 2024.

Magazine: Crypto has 4 years to grow so big ‘no one can shut it down’: Kain Warwick, Infinex

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Crypto’s path to legitimacy runs through the CARF regulation

Published

6 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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The CARF regulation, which brings crypto under global tax reporting standards akin to traditional finance, marks a crucial turning point.

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Tokenized equity still in regulatory grey zone — Attorneys

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Rachel Reeves hints at tax rises in autumn budget after welfare bill U-turn

Published

12 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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Rachel Reeves hints at tax rises in autumn budget after welfare bill U-turn

Rachel Reeves has hinted that taxes are likely to be raised this autumn after a major U-turn on the government’s controversial welfare bill.

Sir Keir Starmer’s Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment Bill passed through the House of Commons on Tuesday after multiple concessions and threats of a major rebellion.

MPs ended up voting for only one part of the plan: a cut to universal credit (UC) sickness benefits for new claimants from £97 a week to £50 from 2026/7.

Initially aimed at saving £5.5bn, it now leaves the government with an estimated £5.5bn black hole – close to breaching Ms Reeves’s fiscal rules set out last year.

In an interview with The Guardian, the chancellor did not rule out tax rises later in the year, saying there were “costs” to watering down the welfare bill.

“I’m not going to [rule out tax rises], because it would be irresponsible for a chancellor to do that,” Ms Reeves told the outlet.

“We took the decisions last year to draw a line under unfunded commitments and economic mismanagement.

“So we’ll never have to do something like that again. But there are costs to what happened.”

Meanwhile, The Times reported that, ahead of the Commons vote on the welfare bill, Ms Reeves told cabinet ministers the decision to offer concessions would mean taxes would have to be raised.

The outlet reported that the chancellor said the tax rises would be smaller than those announced in the 2024 budget, but that she is expected to have to raise tens of billions more.

It comes after Ms Reeves said she was “totally” up to continuing as chancellor after appearing tearful at Prime Minister’s Questions.

Criticising Sir Keir for the U-turns on benefit reform during PMQs, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the chancellor looked “absolutely miserable”, and questioned whether she would remain in post until the next election.

Sir Keir did not explicitly say that she would, and Ms Badenoch interjected to say: “How awful for the chancellor that he couldn’t confirm that she would stay in place.”

In her first comments after the incident, Ms Reeves said she was having a “tough day” before adding: “People saw I was upset, but that was yesterday.

“Today’s a new day and I’m just cracking on with the job.”

Sir Keir also told Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby on Thursday that he “didn’t appreciate” that Ms Reeves was crying in the Commons.

“In PMQs, it is bang, bang, bang,” he said. “That’s what it was yesterday.

“And therefore, I was probably the last to appreciate anything else going on in the chamber, and that’s just a straightforward human explanation, common sense explanation.”