The founder and chief government of Russian bitcoin mining agency BitRiver, Igor Runets, has been detained by Russian authorities and charged with a number of counts of tax evasion, based on native media experiences.

Key Takeaways:

• BitRiver founder and CEO Igor Runets has been detained in Russia and positioned underneath home arrest on a number of tax evasion costs.
• The case provides to mounting stress on BitRiver following sanctions, misplaced companions and operational cutbacks.
• As soon as a serious beneficiary of Russia’s low-cost power, the agency now faces authorized, monetary and reputational challenges.

Russian outlet RBK reported on Sunday that Runets was detained on Friday and later charged with three counts associated to the alleged concealment of belongings to evade taxes.

Citing court docket supplies, the experiences stated the costs have been formally filed on Saturday by Moscow’s Zamoskvoretsky Courtroom.

Courtroom Orders BitRiver CEO Igor Runets Positioned Beneath Home Arrest

The court docket reportedly ordered Runets to be positioned underneath home arrest, a call that took impact the identical day. His authorized workforce has till Wednesday to attraction the ruling.

If no attraction is filed, or whether it is rejected, Runets will stay underneath home arrest at some point of the investigation and any subsequent trial proceedings.

Cointelegraph has reached out to Runets for remark, however no response had been acquired on the time of publication.

Based in 2017, BitRiver grew into certainly one of Russia’s largest bitcoin mining operators, working large-scale knowledge facilities throughout Siberia and providing mining infrastructure providers to company purchasers.

The corporate expanded quickly in the course of the crypto mining growth, benefiting from entry to comparatively low-cost power within the area.

In late 2024, Bloomberg estimated Runets’ internet price at roughly $230 million, largely tied to his function within the crypto mining sector.

BitRiver’s fortunes have been underneath stress in recent times. The corporate was sanctioned by the US Treasury Division in mid-2022 over its ties to Russia following the invasion of Ukraine. The sanctions restricted its entry to Western markets and companions.

In 2023, Japanese monetary group SBI exited its relationship with BitRiver because it withdrew from Russia.

In accordance with Kommersant, BitRiver later reduce prices, scaled again operations in late 2024 and delayed wage funds to employees.

The agency’s difficulties continued into 2025, when electrical energy supplier Infrastructure of Siberia filed two lawsuits alleging BitRiver did not ship gear regardless of receiving advance funds.

BitRiver and Intelion Generate $200M in 2024

As reported, Russia’s industrial crypto mining sector continued to increase in 2024, with the nation’s two largest operators, BitRiver and Intelion, producing a mixed $200 million in income and accounting for greater than half of the authorized market.

BitRiver remained the market chief, reporting income of roughly $129 million in 2024 and working round 175,000 mining rigs throughout 15 knowledge facilities, drawing 533 megawatts of energy.

The corporate’s largest footprint stays in Irkutsk Oblast, Russia’s first main bitcoin mining hub, the place rising exercise has strained the regional energy grid, whereas extra amenities span a number of Siberian and regional places.

BitRiver has additionally begun diversifying its power sources, with greater than 30 MW now provided by related gasoline from oil manufacturing websites.

Intelion posted income of about $78 million, utilizing 298 MW of energy, and recorded the quickest progress amongst main miners.

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