Crypto in resilience ratios capped at 25 percent
The Bank of Russia has published draft rules requiring professional market participants to include cryptocurrencies when calculating financial resilience ratios. The proposal caps exchange-traded crypto at 25 percent of eligible capital assets.
Tight bounds for exchange-traded tokens
The Bank of Russia has published a draft ordinance to assess regulatory impact regarding new capital adequacy rules for professional market participants.
Under the proposed framework, brokers, trustees, forex dealers, and cryptocurrency exchange offices must factor cryptocurrencies into their prudential ratios.
However, strict eligibility criteria apply: intermediaries may only include cryptocurrencies that are admitted to trading on official exchanges.
Furthermore, these digital assets can account for no more than 25 percent of the value of assets included in the equity calculation.
To count toward this limit, market participants must register their holdings with designated crypto depositories.
Accounting for credit and market risk
The draft ordinance outlines specific procedures for assessing credit and market risks for capital adequacy purposes.
By establishing explicit limits on cryptocurrency shares in equity, the regulator aims to ensure intermediaries hold sufficient funds to absorb potential market losses.
The Bank of Russia emphasizes that this updated accounting approach factors in inherent crypto volatility, helping preserve the overall financial resilience of market participants engaging in digital asset operations.
Taming volatility through containment
Including crypto in financial ratios brings needed clarity to volatile markets.
Yet a 25 percent cap severely restricts operational flexibility for dedicated exchange offices.
Requiring depository registration wisely shifts policy from prohibition to controlled oversight.