Bank of Russia Regulation No. 746-P supplies the procedural framework for Russia’s registration regime for organizations that operate information systems in which digital financial assets are issued and organizations that arrange transactions in those assets. It implements Federal Law No. 259-FZ of July 31, 2020. The federal law became operative on January 1, 2021, while Regulation No. 746-P took effect on February 9, 2021. As of June 23, 2026, the regime remains in force and the Bank of Russia continues to publish both operator registers.
What the Bank of Russia DFA operator registers cover
Russia’s statutory “digital financial asset,” or DFA, is a digital right that may represent monetary claims, specified securities-related rights, participation rights in a non-public joint-stock company, or a right to demand transfer of securities. The Bank of Russia states that DFAs are not a means of payment. This category is therefore narrower than the general market use of terms such as crypto asset or token.
An operator of an information system, commonly abbreviated OIS, maintains the system used to issue and account for DFAs, admits users, and performs functions connected with records, access, information requests and court decisions. Only a Russian legal entity entered in the OIS register may hold that status. A DFA exchange operator, or OO CFA, facilitates sale, exchange and other transactions. Eligible exchange operators include Russian credit institutions, trading organizers and other qualifying commercial or nonprofit entities.
The two-register structure does not always require a separate entity for each function. In specified circumstances, an OIS may arrange transactions involving DFAs issued in its own system without separate entry in the exchange-operator register when its approved system rules incorporate the provisions required for exchange rules. The Bank of Russia also distinguishes this framework from the organization of issuance or circulation of “digital currency,” which falls outside the OIS and OO CFA activities addressed here.
Admission and Bank of Russia approval
Admission combines entity-level review with approval of an operating rulebook. Applicants submit prescribed documents through the Bank of Russia’s information-exchange portal, and the regulator may conduct verification measures at the proposed operating address. The published procedural guidance states a review period of up to 60 working days for an OIS. For an exchange operator, the period is up to 90 working days, reduced to 45 working days for a credit institution or trading organizer.
OIS rules address matters including issuance procedures, user requirements, access, accounting methods, the user register, information protection, operational reliability and interaction with exchange operators. Exchange rules address transaction procedures, eligible DFA types, interaction with information-system operators, information security, operational reliability and, where applicable, automated performance and settlement arrangements. If the rules are approved, the Bank includes the operator in the relevant register and publishes the updated register and approved rules within three working days.
Eligibility, oversight and public status
The Bank of Russia evaluates management qualifications and business reputation, internal controls, risk management, information security and operational resilience. Exchange operators that are not qualifying banks or trading organizers are also subject to statutory financial thresholds; the Bank’s public summary identifies minimum charter capital and net assets of 50 million rubles. Grounds for refusal include noncompliant rules, failure to meet applicant or personnel standards, and incomplete or unreliable application information.
Regulation No. 746-P also governs the contents of the registers, submissions concerning persons who control shares or participation interests, notices of changes, register extracts and approval of amendments to operator rules. Separate Bank of Russia directions govern removal from the registers. Registration is consequently an ongoing supervised status rather than a one-time filing, and an entry should not be read as a guarantee of an issue’s value or performance.
Status and development of the regime
The Bank admitted Atomyze as the first OIS on February 3, 2022, and admitted Moscow Exchange as the first DFA exchange operator on August 3, 2023. Regulation No. 746-P was amended by Bank of Russia Direction No. 6522-U, effective November 3, 2023, including updates to register information and application materials. The authoritative sources for an operator’s current status are the live Bank of Russia register entry and the approved rules published for that organization.