Russia's National Wealth Fund (NWF) Will Not Include Bitcoin or Other Cryptocurrencies

On March 5, 2025, the Russian Vice Minister of Finance Vladimir Kolychev made it clear that Russia has no plans to add Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency

March 5, 2025- Russian Vice Minister of Finance Vladimir Kolychev has ruled out any possibility of adding Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency to the National Wealth Fund (NWF).

So far, Russia has accepted cryptocurrencies and used them as a practical financial instrument in international trade. But it does not consider them part of the national reserves and remains cautious about their long-term strategic role.

NWF Holdings: mainly yuan and gold, not digital assets

According to Interfax, Kolychev confirmed that the Ministry of Finance has no plans to change the current investment structure of the NWF. Digital assets will not be included, largely due to their high volatility.

Asked if there was any possibility to adjust the investment structure of the NWF, Kolychev replied in the negative.

“No. Only gold and yuan,” he stated.

As Interfax notes, the fund can hold up to 60% in yuan and a maximum of 40% in gold. Kolychev also said he hadn't heard of any discussions about setting up a strategic cryptocurrency reserve by Russia-an idea presented by the Trump administration in the US.

Moreover, he highlighted that high liquidity and low risk are crucial factors in determining the assets in the NWF. Digital assets do not meet these criteria due to their extreme volatility.

“From the perspective of a sovereign budget reserve, it is crucial that the assets of the fund are very liquid and can be sold quickly without a significant loss in value. We do not want to end up in a situation where we have to sell an asset for half the price we have invested. Digital assets are very volatile, so we never considered them for the NWF and have no plans to do that in the future,” Kolychev explained.

Kolychev noted that the NWF could consider investing in less liquid and more volatile assets once it reaches 7–10% of GDP. However, he said the fund is still far from that level. On February 1, the volume of the National Wealth Fund reached 11.97 trillion Rubel ($ 122.09 billion), which is equal to 5.6% of the expected GDP for 2025, according to a report from the Russian Ministry of Finance.

Meanwhile, Russia has taken legal action to regulate cryptocurrency. At the end of November 2024, the Russian Parliament adopted a law that recognizes Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as assets. The law imposes a personal income tax of 13–15% on crypto transactions and awaits President Vladimir Putin’s signature to come into effect.

One report from the Bank of Russia in December 2024 stated that Bitcoin accounted for 69% of the total cryptocurrency possession of Russians on exchanges in September 2024.

Until now, Russia has adopted a pragmatic approach to Bitcoin, using it in international transactions to circumvent sanctions, but it is not included in national reserves.