Image: from Crypto Jargon X@Crypto_Jargon
By Open Chronicle with Agencies
BRATSK / MOSCOW — BitRiver, once the dominant force in Russia’s cryptocurrency mining sector, is on the brink of collapse following a court-mandated bankruptcy observation and the arrest of its founder on tax evasion charges.
The Sverdlovsk Arbitration Court has initiated formal bankruptcy proceedings against Fox Group, the parent company that holds a 98% stake in BitRiver Management Company. The filing was spearheaded by Siberian Infrastructure, a subsidiary of the energy titan En+ Group, over an unfulfilled $9.2 million (700 million ruble) equipment contract. Despite a 2025 court ruling in favor of En+, authorities were reportedly unable to find sufficient assets to cover the debt, leading to the current bankruptcy petition.
🚨🇷🇺BREAKING: Russia’s largest crypto miner BitRiver is facing bankruptcy.
A court has opened insolvency proceedings against its main owner, while BitRiver’s founder and CEO has reportedly been placed under house arrest on tax evasion charges.
Sanctions pressure, unpaid energy… pic.twitter.com/tPWIFeXv9N
— Crypto Jargon (@Crypto_Jargon) February 2, 2026
The financial hemorrhaging extends far beyond a single contract. BitRiver is currently besieged by a wave of lawsuits from major regional utility providers, including Irkutsk Electric Grid Company and En+ Sbyt. Total claims for unpaid electricity bills have surpassed 940 million rubles ($12.2 million), a figure that has already paralyzed operations at several of the firm’s data centers in Irkutsk and the Republic of Ingushetia.
Adding to the company’s “death spiral,” BitRiver founder and CEO Igor Runets was detained by Moscow authorities on January 30. Runets, a Stanford MBA graduate who built BitRiver into an industry leader with over 533 MW of capacity, now faces three counts of tax evasion under Article 199.2 of the Russian Criminal Code. He has been placed under house arrest until at least early April.
The operational collapse was preceded by a mass exodus of leadership. Sources indicate that by the end of 2025, approximately 80% of the company’s executive team had resigned as salary delays and office closures became routine. At its peak, BitRiver controlled over 50% of the Russian mining market and reported revenues exceeding 10 billion rubles in 2024, despite being placed under U.S. sanctions in 2022.
Negotiations are reportedly underway regarding the potential sale of BitRiver’s remaining assets and a change in ownership. However, with frozen accounts and its CEO in legal jeopardy, analysts suggest the “Russian mining king” may instead be the first major casualty of a wider consolidation within the nation’s burgeoning but volatile crypto-infrastructure industry.