Russian online marketplaces report rising sales of hardware crypto wallets: in Q2, the number of devices sold on the M.Video platform increased by 107% versus January–March. On Wildberries, demand in the first six months rose 84% year over year, RIA Novosti wrote.
According to M.Video, category turnover grew 92%. Of the total, about 40% accounted for Ledger (almost 30% of sales), and more than 20% for Trezor (20% of devices sold). The lineup also includes OneKey, Ellipal, SafePal and Jade. The company did not disclose the absolute number of wallets sold, nor a comparison with Q2 2025.
According to a press release from the combined company Wildberries & Russ, sales of self-custody devices in January–June increased 60% by value compared with the same period last year. The average unit price fell 13% to 7,900 rubles. Buyers most often chose crypto wallets with NFC modules and backup cards.
Demand for hardware wallets has spiked before. In March–April 2022, sales of such devices in Russia rose five- to eightfold. M.Video-Eldorado then reported an eightfold increase in Q1 relative to the last three months of 2021. In Q2, the figure rose by roughly another 25%.
On Ozon, the peak came in April 2022: unit sales were three times January’s. Company and market representatives linked the trend to currency restrictions, sanctions, difficulties with cross-border transfers, and an expanded product range.
Neither M.Video nor Wildberries attribute the 2026 trend to changes in legislation.
“We see hardware crypto wallets gradually becoming a full-fledged category of personal electronics alongside other smart gadgets and digital security devices,” — said Fedor Pavlenko, head of the Computer Components category at M.Video.
Growth driver?
On August 4, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law regulating the cryptocurrency market. Most provisions take effect on September 1, 2026.
The new system provides for regulated intermediaries and digital depositories. In a clarification, the Bank of Russia said that non-qualified investors, after testing, will be able to buy the most liquid cryptocurrencies up to 300,000 rubles per year through a single intermediary. Earlier, ForkLog discussed contentious aspects of the bill with lawyers and market participants.
Following the law’s adoption, industry communities raised questions about what the new rules mean for self-custody.
In a discussion on Reddit, one user asked whether cryptocurrency could be withdrawn from a Russian exchange to a cold wallet. Participants’ answers contradict each other: some believe withdrawals to a personal device are prohibited, while others admit they have not fully understood the text of the law.
Similar questions had arisen before. In a discussion on Habr, users examined whether a “cold wallet to cold wallet” transaction would be legal, whether cryptocurrency can be held at one’s own non-custodial address, and how the new restrictions would apply to such transfers.
Vladimir Sobinsky, head of the digital currencies and digital financial assets practice at PLAN B, told ForkLog that owning such devices is not prohibited by law, but the new requirements will affect cryptocurrency transactions:
“For an ordinary owner who already stores cryptocurrency on a hardware or other non-custodial wallet, the very fact of such ownership does not become illegal. Moreover, the new regulation explicitly provides for the possibility for residents to have address identifiers not administered by digital depositories, meaning the self-custody model outside the Russian digital framework remains. There is no requirement in the laws to transfer previously acquired cryptocurrency to a Russian digital depository. The main changes concern not storage, but subsequent transactions.”
Wallet registration will not be required
If a user continues to store previously acquired cryptocurrency and does not conduct transactions with it, no special actions will be required solely because of the new law, Sobinsky noted.
“At the same time, for transactions using addresses not administered by digital depositories, special reporting is introduced: resident individuals will be required to submit the relevant reports to the tax authorities,” — the expert noted.
Separately, Sobinsky answered whether the device would need to be registered:
“The law does not require informing the state about the very fact of owning a physical device. The legislation does not use the term ‘hardware wallet’ at all.”
Unrestricted withdrawals from the depository are not guaranteed
Judging by social media, users are also concerned about the ability to withdraw cryptocurrency purchased through a Russian intermediary to their own hardware wallet. According to Sobinsky, self-custody remains permitted, but separate conditions apply to withdrawals directly from a Russian digital depository.
“[…] the law sets a closed list of situations when a transfer to an address not administered by a Russian depository is allowed. Therefore, a direct withdrawal from a Russian digital depository to the user’s fully non-custodial hardware wallet does not follow from the literal text of the law as a freely permitted operation. Unless the Bank of Russia establishes a corresponding exception,” — Sobinsky concluded.
The signed law also provides for a 48-hour cooling-off period when transferring digital assets worth more than 100,000 rubles from a depository to a non-custodial wallet. Separate anti-fraud requirements for crypto exchanges and digital depositories will take effect later.
The law introduces a transition period until July 1, 2027. During this time, market participants must obtain the necessary permits and bring their activities into compliance with the new requirements.
In August, news emerged of the creation of a self-regulatory organization for digital currency exchange operators — the founding congress will take place on September 1 in Moscow.
