The Social Fund of Russia said questions about receiving pensions in cryptocurrency became one of the most common non-standard requests in 2025, when its call center handled roughly 37 million calls about pensions, benefits and maternity capital. Callers frequently asked whether pensions could be paid in crypto and whether income from crypto mining would affect social benefits.
The fund told callers that all pensions and social payments are issued in rubles and that digital assets fall outside its remit, with taxation and crypto income matters handled by the Federal Tax Service of Russia, as noted in the report.
A recent analysis by Chainalysis found Russia led Europe in crypto inflows, receiving $376.3 billion between July 2024 and June 2025, ahead of the United Kingdom at $273.2 billion for the same period. The study linked the gap to a sharp rise in institutional activity and broader decentralized finance use.
Large crypto transfers above $10 million rose 86% year over year, overall inflows to Russia climbed 48%, retail usage grew more than in other European markets, and DeFi activity jumped eightfold in early 2025.
The Bank of Russia proposed allowing non-qualified retail investors to buy a limited set of liquid crypto assets after passing a knowledge test, with annual investments capped at 300,000 rubles ($3,834); qualified investors would get broader access, excluding privacy coins, and would also need a knowledge assessment.
