Russia’s largest trading group, the Moscow Exchange, announced the launch of Bitcoin futures contracts on June 4, 2025. The new derivatives will allow qualified Russian investors to gain exposure to the Bitcoin price without directly owning it.
The Bitcoin futures contract is calculated in cash in Russian rubles and will be associated with the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) traded on the US exchange. IBIT ETF tracks the price of Bitcoin, each share represents 0.00068 Bitcoin.
Trading for new Bitcoin futures began Wednesday, with the first contract expiring in September 2025. Each futures contract will be denominated in US dollars per bitcoin but settled in rubles.
Bitcoin futures on the Moscow Exchange were launched after the increase in exposure to Bitcoin by Russian financial institutions. In May, Russia’s central bank officially allowed cryptocurrency securities and derivatives to qualified investors. Until then, it is not recommended to invest directly in Bitcoin.
Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, has also announced plans to unveil its own Bitcoin futures products in addition to its products on the Moscow Exchange. The bank is launching exchange-traded banknotes, which states that there is no direct ownership tracking the price of Bitcoin.
Bitcoin futures and other crypto derivatives will see interest surge recently as the Bitcoin and crypto industry matures. The move comes as more and more countries are starting to increase Bitcoin in their reserves.
As Bitcoin adoption increases, investors and financial institutions are looking for more ways to obtain the risk of Bitcoin. Moscow Exchange’s futures launch provides regulated bitcoin for qualified Russian investors. However, in the traditional Russian financial sector, direct ownership of “physical” Bitcoin remains restricted.
