Russian Bitcoin mining may be quietly propping up the ruble, the head of the country’s central bank suggests. Elvira Nabiullina told reporters that Bitcoin mining — which she called an “underrated export” — could be contributing to the ruble’s recent strength. The currency has strengthened from roughly 110 RUB/USD earlier in 2025 to about 80–81 RUB/USD, and Russia now accounts for roughly 16% of the global Bitcoin hashrate. That mining footprint also carries real economic weight. Reporting suggests Russia produced about 35,000 BTC this year at an estimated production cost near $39,000 per coin, while BTC traded at roughly $92,000 on average — a sizable margin if those figures hold. The implication: large-scale, low-cost mining can generate export-style revenue when miners convert crypto proceeds into rubles. Market context and price action Bitcoin’s price saw a dramatic swing in late 2025. After hitting multiple peaks this year — including a high of $126,080 in October — BTC tumbled in the months that followed. Short-term data from CoinGecko at the time of reporting shows BTC up 1.5% over 24 hours, flat (+0.1%) over the past week and up 7.6% over the previous month. Still, the coin is down 2.4% on the 14-day chart and about 7.2% since December 2024, and remains more than 26% below its all-time high. Looking ahead: bullish forecasts for 2026–27 Despite the recent pullback, many market observers expect a renewed bullish phase in 2026. Asset manager Grayscale and research firm Bernstein both foresee Bitcoin setting a new all-time high next year. Bernstein’s more bullish roadmap sees BTC breaking $150,000 in 2026 and reaching $200,000 in 2027. What this means Nabiullina’s comments underscore an often-overlooked intersection between crypto mining and national macroeconomics: when a country mines a material share of supply at low cost, that activity can feed into foreign-exchange flows and wider financial dynamics. As Bitcoin’s price and policy environment continue to evolve — including shifts in U.S. crypto policy this year — the interplay between miners, national currencies and markets will be an important story to watch in 2026. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

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