Bank of Russia Blacklists 2,600 Crypto Wallets in First Half of 2026

The Bank of Russia said in a new report that it identified and blacklisted about 2,600 cryptocurrency wallets linked to illegal activity in the first half of 2026, a figure down roughly 31 percent from the same period last year. Rather than blocking wallets directly on the blockchain, the report said Russia's monitoring system links flagged wallets to bank accounts and payment gateways, cutting the owners of suspicious transactions off from the formal financial system once flagged. The central bank warned that despite fewer identified cases, about 74 percent of Ponzi schemes in Russia now use cryptocurrency to raise funds, and the use of tether for illegal lending has doubled compared with the previous year.