Russia’s Finance Ministry Pushes National Stablecoin after USDT Wallet Freeze
Please note that we are not authorised to provide any investment advice. The content on this page is for information purposes only.
On April 16, a Reuters report, supported by Russian state outlet TASS, claimed that a recent foreign freeze on Russian exchange Garantex has jolted Moscow into reconsidering its crypto stance.
The Finance Ministry chief Osman Kabaloev urges the Kremlin to craft a ruble‑pegged stablecoin akin to USDT, arguing it would shield local users from similar clampdowns.
https://twitter.com/rovercrc/status/1912546725639627240
Foreign Clampdown Sparks Talk of a Homegrown, Currency‑pegged Token in Russia
Kabaloev told TASS that Russia currently allows stablecoins to operate inside its regulatory sandbox, yet recent events show these tokens still carry national‑level risks.
Kabaloev’s statement comes after the U.S. Justice Department and regulators in Germany and Finland froze domains linked to Garantex on March 6.
On the same day, Tether froze $27 million in USDT, forcing Garantex to halt withdrawals and suspend operations.
The European Union had blacklisted Garantex earlier in February, alleging the platform worked with sanctioned banks Sberbank and Alfa‑Bank to evade EU sanctions. The sanctioned crypto exchange has reportedly processed over $96 billion in criminal proceeds since 2019.
However, Garantex has allegedly resurfaced as Grinex after moving ruble‑backed stablecoins, according to Swiss blockchain‑analytics firm Global Ledger.
https://twitter.com/GlobalLedger/status/1902411970306781541
Meanwhile, Evgeny Masharov of the Russian Civic Chamber has proposed a new government crypto fund using assets seized in criminal cases.
Even Bank of Russia Governor Elvira Nabiullina, who opposes crypto for domestic payments, admits that Russian firms are actively testing cross‑border crypto transfers to bypass Western sanctions.
Global Interest in Stablecoins Surges amid Evolving Sovereignty Safeguards
Russia’s interest in stablecoins comes amid a wider boom in adoption. The stablecoin market surpassed $200 billion in early 2025.
https://twitter.com/Alphractal/status/1885228807969243381
A joint report from Artemis and Dune shows active wallets jumped over 50% in a year, and in 2024, stablecoin volumes hit $27.6 trillion, 7.7% higher than Visa and Mastercard combined.
Japan, one of the countries that gave stablecoins a major boost, permitted SBI VC to start full‑scale USDC trading on March 26, making Circle’s token the first dollar stablecoin approved under Japan’s new rules.
Circle continues to broaden its footprint. GCash in the Philippines now supports USDC for remittances, and Dubai’s free‑zone firms can transact with USDC and its euro sibling, EURC, under its new regulations.
USDT, however, still holds more than 60% of the stablecoin market, handling an estimated 92% of crypto food‑and‑retail payments across the EU.
The European Central Bank acknowledges digital currency’s value and says the EU is building infrastructure for a 2025 digital euro launch to safeguard monetary sovereignty.
