The starting point of all this is a dispute that is all too familiar to us in the crypto community—the USDT lending dispute.

Fast forward to 2023, a resident in Moscow lent 1000 USDT, and after the loan term expired, the borrower refused to return it. The lender had no choice but to sue in court, demanding the return of USDT. However, the lower court directly dismissed the claim on the grounds that USDT was not included in Russia's "Digital Financial Assets Law" and was not a legally recognized digital financial asset, thus not being protected.

Upon hearing this, many Chinese crypto players might empathize—this is a common predicament, right? When a dispute arises over your crypto assets (loans, theft, inheritance), seeking legal protection often gets dismissed due to lack of clear legal grounds, leaving you at a loss.

The ruling from the Russian Constitutional Court directly overturned the decision of the lower court, providing three core conclusions that completely dispel the misconception that crypto assets are unprotected by law, also offering references to the global crypto world:

1. Legally obtained crypto assets are not mere digital symbols but are property protected by law—just like houses and money, they possess independent property attributes;

2. There’s no need to wait for a specific law to list them; as long as you obtained the crypto assets legally, you enjoy equal protection under the constitution and civil law, so you need not fear lack of legal provisions for non-protection;

3. Crypto assets can go through normal inheritance, mortgage, and recovery processes; if disputes arise, creditors can protect their rights through litigation, and the court can enforce the law.

Many in the crypto community see "legal crypto assets" and start fantasizing about the freedom to trade—don’t misunderstand! The recent moves by Russia are not about letting everyone trade arbitrarily; rather, they are building a complete system that first clarifies rights and then regulates, which aligns with our country’s core orientation of combating illegal trading and preventing financial risks.

It is reported that Russia is advancing a specialized regulatory framework, expected to take effect in 2027, with core rules categorized by participant types, which crypto people can refer to for guidance.

• Ordinary players must first pass a risk awareness test to prove their ability to identify and bear risks, with an annual limit of about $4,000 (300,000 rubles, approximately $3,918) for purchasing crypto assets, and can only trade "whitelisted" currencies approved by the Russian Central Bank; trading of unregistered currencies and highly speculative altcoins is strictly prohibited;

• Qualified investors and institutions with adequate financial strength and risk control capabilities will have access to more types and modes of currency trading, but must fulfill stricter obligations for information disclosure and risk reporting, and accept full supervision;

• Exchanges must register within Russia and obtain a financial regulatory license to operate legally. Unregistered or illegally operating exchanges face fines, and their responsible persons may be held criminally liable, which aligns closely with our country’s approach to cracking down on illegal crypto asset trading venues.

In simple terms, Russia's approach is: first clarify that legitimate holdings are protected, then delineate red lines that cannot be crossed, effectively protecting legal rights while preventing financial risks, moving crypto assets from a gray area to a legalized track.

Russia's actions are not accidental; the core is to solve its own practical problems, and the logic behind it can help us Chinese crypto players discern the global regulatory trends for crypto assets and avoid many pitfalls.

Due to international sanctions, Russia was expelled from the SWIFT settlement system, making cross-border trade settlement and fund transfers particularly difficult—high cost, low efficiency, and frequent bottlenecks. However, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and USDT, being decentralized and easily transferable across borders, do not rely on traditional financial systems and can serve as backup tools to help Russia break the blockade and ensure asset liquidity.

It is important to emphasize: for Russia, the core value of crypto assets is the transfer of value, not speculative trading. This also reveals a core logic: the importance given to crypto assets by the state essentially stems from their technical characteristics serving actual needs, rather than speculative trading driving market trends.

Like China, an increasing number of people in Russia hold crypto assets, leading to more disputes over lending, transfer, inheritance, etc. However, previous specialized laws did not cover all types of crypto assets, leading to "different judgments for the same case" during court hearings, leaving many with no recourse for protecting their rights. This ruling clarifies the property rights of crypto assets at the constitutional level, providing a unified basis for court rulings and reflecting the approach of "judicial action first, then legislative improvement," addressing the difficulties in protecting rights in the crypto community.

First, it is essential to clarify a bottom line: the regulatory orientation for crypto assets in China fundamentally differs from Russia and will not copy its model. However, Russia’s ruling and regulatory logic can provide Chinese crypto players with three highly practical insights, each relating to your asset security and legal recourse.

Currently, domestic regulatory policies are primarily focused on combating illegal trading and preventing risks, explicitly prohibiting the issuance of financing through virtual currency tokens and speculative trading. However, there are no specialized regulations for the civil rights protection for "legally acquired crypto assets" (such as those obtained through legal gifts or inheritance). This is also a reason many of us face difficulties in protecting our rights.

Russia's practice tells us: even if trading is not relaxed, legal assets can still be protected through judicial means. For Chinese crypto players, the emphasis should be on maintaining the threshold of legal acquisition.

If your crypto assets are obtained through pyramiding schemes, fraud, or illegal trading (such as trading on unlicensed exchanges), your rights will definitely not be protected by law. However, if acquired legally, you can attempt to protect your rights through civil legal pathways in future disputes arising from lending, inheritance, and so forth. This is the foundation for safeguarding your rights, and also the bottom line.

The technological iteration of crypto assets is happening too quickly for specialized legislation to keep up; new types of coins and trading models continue to emerge, making it difficult for legislation to achieve comprehensive coverage. Russia has adopted a "judicial first" model, establishing core rules through rulings from the highest judicial authority and gradually improving legislation, which is likely to become a global mainstream trend.

For Chinese crypto players, instead of worrying daily about when domestic specialized legislation will emerge, a more practical approach is: pay more attention to domestic court cases regarding disputes over crypto assets, understand the court’s logic in rulings, clarify your behavioral boundaries (for instance, identifying actions that may cross legal lines), and proactively avoid legal risks. This will better protect your assets than simply waiting for legislation.

Although Russia has affirmed the property rights of crypto assets, it has not relaxed regulation. Instead, it has strengthened risk prevention through tiered control and licensing, which aligns perfectly with our country’s approach to preventing and resolving financial risks.

Remember this: regardless of how the global regulatory environment for crypto assets changes, risk prevention is the core of regulation in every country, and it is key for us players to safeguard our property. As Chinese crypto players, you must firmly uphold compliance thresholds, stay away from unlicensed illegal exchanges, avoid unregistered altcoins; do not participate in pyramid schemes or fraud-related crypto projects; do not blindly leverage to trade, avoiding total loss; at the same time, carefully preserve legal evidence for the acquisition of crypto assets (such as gift agreements, inheritance certificates, etc.). Even if future protections for legal assets are strengthened domestically, assets obtained or traded illegally will never receive legal protection.

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