Russia Reportedly Looking Into Creating Its Own Stablecoin

by Murtuza J Merchant Benzinga Staff Writer

Zinger Key Points

Officials are seeking financial alternatives to maintain transactional independence in the face of economic isolation.
Domestic stablecoin development could support Russia’s long-term goal of reducing reliance on Western financial systems.
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Russia is exploring the creation of its own stablecoins following the recent freeze of digital wallets linked to Russian entities, which held large amounts of the USDT USDT/USD stablecoin.

What Happened: A senior Finance Ministry official indicated that such an initiative could help maintain financial autonomy amid growing restrictions from Western sanctions, according to Reuters.

Osman Kabaloev, deputy head of the ministry's financial policy department, said on Wednesday that the incident underscores the need for Russia to develop internal stablecoin alternatives.

"The recent blockage makes us think that we need to consider creating internal tools similar to USDT, possibly pegged to other currencies," Kabaloev stated.

Stablecoins, especially those pegged to the U.S. dollar like USDT, have become central to the cryptocurrency ecosystem, allowing users to transfer value between digital assets and fiat currencies.

In Russia, they had also become a workaround for cross-border payments, which have been complicated by international sanctions.

The move comes after Tether, the issuer of USDT, froze wallets on the Russian crypto exchange Garantex, disabling access to over 2.5 billion rubles (approximately $30 million).

The freeze was initiated shortly after Garantex was targeted by European Union sanctions in early March, leading the platform to suspend operations.

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Why It Matters: Although Russia’s central bank remains opposed to the domestic use of cryptocurrencies, it has allowed limited testing of international crypto-based payments.

Central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina confirmed that some Russian firms are currently participating in these trials as part of a broader experimental framework.

The episode has prompted renewed discussions around digital financial infrastructure in Russia, particularly on how the country can shield its economic activity from external disruptions.

A domestically developed stablecoin could serve as an alternative to Western-issued tokens, offering a new layer of financial sovereignty.

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