Russia is turning to bitcoin and crypto to facilitate oil trades with China and India, circumventing sanctions imposed on Ukraine.

While fiat currencies remain the primary method, crypto is seen as a convenient and flexible tool for transactions.

The cryptocurrency scheme currently represents a small fraction of Russia's $192 billion annual oil trade, according to the International Energy Agency, but its usage is reportedly increasing.

Russia has started using cryptocurrencies to sell oil to China and India as a way to get around Western sanctions. These sanctions, mainly imposed by the U.S. and Europe, limit Russia’s access to global banking systems.

Russia is using cryptocurrencies in its oil trade with China and India to dodge Western sanctions, Reuters reported Friday, citing four sources with direct knowledge of the matter. Russia passed crypto mining legislation in August 2024,