Russian crypto miners are increasingly turning their attention to Dogecoin (DOGE) and other altcoins, with a lessening focus on Bitcoin (BTC), a leading lawmaker has claimed.
Per a Telegram post from the Russian lawmaker Anton Gorelkin and a report from the media outlet RBC, 8.4% of Russian crypto miners are putting their efforts into mining DOGE.
Russian Miners: Dogecoin Gaining Popularity?
Gorelkin is the deputy head of the State Duma’s Committee on Information Policy, Information Technology, and Communications, and a key figure in crafting Russian crypto-related legislation.
The market cap of Dogecoin (DOGE) over the past 12 months. (Source: CoinMarketCap)
He is also the chairman of ROCIT, a public organization that claims to protect the rights of Internet users in Russia.
Gorelkin claimed the figures were unveiled at a meeting of the ROCIT’s commission on blockchain technology, with crypto mining industry and government agency officials in attendance.
ROCIT claimed that only 49.4% of Russian miners focus their attention on Bitcoin. The second-most popular coin is Litecoin (LTC), the body said, with 11.1%, with DOGE following in third.
The claims run counter to reports from the Russian tech company MTS, which last month said that BTC “accounts for 90% of” the nation’s industrial capacity.
MTS added that other industrial miners prefer LTC, as well as Kaspa (KAS), Ethereum (ETH), and Monero (XMR).
A State Duma committee room. (Source: nterkomitet.ru [CC BY 3.0])
Contested Figures?
In previous years, Russian industrial mining figures have claimed that BTC accounts for 90% or more of their production, with a smaller group of industrial players opting for LTC and ETH.
Russian crypto mining community members have previously told Cryptonews.com that many home-based miners prefer ETH.
RBC, meanwhile, pointed out that miners can use the Scrypt Proof-of-Work (PoW) algorithm for both DOGE and LTC. The outlet wrote:
“Dual mining is possible when working with these cryptocurrencies [DOGE and LTC]. That allows both coins to be mined simultaneously on a single device, using special software.”
Moscow Hopes for Crypto Mining Tax Windfall
Gorelkin also commented on Moscow’s efforts to create a national registry of Russian crypto miners.
A law (which Gorelkin helped create) that came into force last year obliges all industrial players and many large-scale private miners to sign up to the registry.
The registry is controlled by the Federal Tax Service (FTS), with a view of eventually taxing the sector. Gorelkin wrote:
“In April, Russian miners will have to submit their first ever tax declarations to the FTS. Budget revenues from mining activities were previously estimated at 50-60 billion rubles [$586.9 million-$704.3 million] per year. Let’s see how accurate these forecasts were.”
The lawmaker said that 98 “mining infrastructure” operators have already signed up to the registry, as well as 563 “individual [miners].”
Gorelkin added that the FTS appears to be satisfied that “the rate of registry signups is growing.”
But he said that “perhaps” in his “assessment” the FTS should introduce punitive measures for miners who fail to report their activities. He wrote:
“It is already worth thinking about introducing some form of stimulation at the level of the Code of Administrative Offenses.”
Despite Moscow’s attempts to police the crypto mining sector, illegal crypto mining appears to be growing quickly, particularly in Siberia.
In February, the Siberian power firm Irkutskenergosbyt claimed that “household electricity consumption” in the first month of 2025 grew by 1% compared to January 2024 figures.
Earlier this month, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko ordered his government to step up its “development” of the Russian ally state’s crypto mining sector.
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