Crypto▼ Bearish
Russia extends gasoline export ban; crypto fills the gap
Deputy PM Novak confirms fuel curbs through year-end. Russian energy traders use Bitcoin, Ether, and USDT to settle deals with Chinese and Indian buyers, bypassing SWIFT restrictions.
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The Kremlin is keeping its gasoline export ban in place through the end of 2025, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak announced on September 25. The decision targets domestic fuel supplies battered by Ukrainian drone strikes on refineries. Novak also introduced a partial ban on diesel exports for non-producers, effective immediately.
Russian officials have signaled they plan to lift the diesel export ban once market conditions recover. The new restrictions extend a pattern that has become familiar. Earlier bans covered stretches from April through July 2025, suggesting a rolling strategy to manage fuel availability during wartime rather than a one-off emergency measure.
Western sanctions have made it difficult for Russian enterprises to settle energy trades through conventional banking. SWIFT restrictions, correspondent banking cutoffs, and secondary sanctions threats have turned routine oil transactions into logistical problems. Russian energy traders have turned to Bitcoin, Ether, and Tether's USDT for settlement, particularly with partners in China and India. These two countries remain the largest buyers of Russian discounted crude and fuel products.