BitRiver founder Igor Runets, head of Russia’s largest Bitcoin mining operator, was placed in pretrial detention on July 22 by a Moscow court. The move follows new fraud charges tied to a $7.9 million mining equipment contract with a subsidiary of energy group En+ that was never delivered.
🔑 Key takeaways
- BitRiver founder Igor Runets transferred to pretrial detention on July 22, 2025
- New charges of organized fraud tied to an unfulfilled $7.9M mining equipment deal
- Dispute pits Fox Group against Infrastructure of Siberia, an En+ subsidiary
- Fox Group has been under court supervision since January 2026
- BitRiver remains under US sanctions since April 2022
From house arrest to pretrial detention: a case that accelerates
Moscow’s Zamoskvoretsky district court ruled on July 22, 2025, that Igor Runets, founder and CEO of BitRiver, be transferred from his home to a pretrial detention facility for a minimum of two months. The decision marks a significant tightening of preventive measures against the entrepreneur, who had been under house arrest since January 30.
Investigators had requested the stricter measure, citing the risk that Runets could influence witnesses, according to court documents reported by bits.media and Forbes Russia. The court granted the request, signaling that the Russian judiciary no longer considers home confinement sufficient to ensure the integrity of the proceedings.
A $7.9 million mining contract at the heart of the case
The new charges against Runets fall under Part 4 of Article 159 of the Russian Criminal Code, which penalizes organized fraud involving particularly large sums. Investigators allege that Fox Group, the company 98% controlled by Runets, signed a 2023 contract to supply Bitcoin mining equipment to Infrastructure of Siberia, an entity within the En+ energy and steel group.
The table below summarizes the key financial elements of the case:
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Parties | Fox Group (seller) / Infrastructure of Siberia (buyer) |
| Contract year | 2023 |
| Contract value | > $8 million |
| Equipment | Antminer S19k Pro and other ASICs |
| Advance paid | $7.9 million |
| Delivery deadline | 32 days |
| Estimated damages | ~1 billion rubles ($12.5-13M) |
According to Forbes Russia, citing RBC and case files, Infrastructure of Siberia transferred more than $7.9 million in advance, with a 32-day delivery deadline. Investigators claim the equipment was never delivered and the payment was not refunded. Runets had nonetheless stated in May 2025 that the hardware had indeed been delivered and that Fox Group would appeal. This contradiction now lies at the core of the criminal case.
« The contract covered more than eight million dollars of mining rigs, including Antminer S19k Pro units, whose delivery was never documented. »
Court document cited by Forbes Russia
From the Bit+ joint venture to civil proceedings with En+
The dispute did not emerge out of nowhere: it stems from a longstanding commercial relationship between BitRiver and En+. In November 2020, the two groups announced Bit+, a joint venture designed to operate Bitcoin mining facilities powered by hydropower in the Irkutsk region of Siberia. En+ described BitRiver at the time as « Russia’s largest data center offering colocation services for Bitcoin miners, » with En+ in charge of electricity supply.
The conflict was first adjudicated on civil grounds. In April 2025, the Irkutsk region arbitration court ordered Fox Group to pay 954.4 million rubles to Infrastructure of Siberia for the unfulfilled advance, while freezing certain funds and equipment during the examination of the case.
Fox Group’s financial collapse and parallel tax cases
On the financial side, Fox Group’s situation — the entity holding 98% of BitRiver — has deteriorated sharply. The company has been subject to collective proceedings since January 2026: a commercial court in Sverdlovsk Oblast opened court supervision proceedings in late January, just days before Runets’ first arrest, over an unpaid debt of approximately 700 million rubles (~$9.2 million) tied to another unfulfilled equipment contract. Forbes reports that in May, the court converted the procedure into liquidation after Infrastructure of Siberia demanded repayment.
In parallel, in June, a Moscow court froze Runets’ stakes in Fox Group and several BitRiver-linked entities during the review of company assets. According to the business daily Kommersant, BitRiver had begun cutting staff and delaying salary payments as early as late 2024. By the end of 2025, about 80% of management had left the company, several offices had shut down, and equipment as well as corporate documents — including HR records — had been removed from the premises.
Layered on top, Runets has been under prosecution since January for tax evasion under Article 199.2 of the Russian Criminal Code, which penalizes the concealment of funds and assets to evade taxes and social contributions, an offense punishable by up to three years in prison. Multiple tax cases have since been merged into a broader proceeding, which justified the initial house arrest order set to take effect on February 4.
Limited direct impact on crypto markets, but a signal for the industry
BitRiver remains a private company with no listed token: its founder’s detention triggers no directly measurable reaction on cryptocurrency markets. The group nonetheless remains under US sanctions since April 2022, when the US Treasury sanctioned BitRiver AG and ten Russian subsidiaries — a first for a mining company — on the grounds that such firms could help Russia monetize its energy resources following the invasion of Ukraine.
Conclusion
Runets’ pretrial detention accelerates the judicial spiral around BitRiver, already weakened by liquidation proceedings, frozen assets, and a hemorrhaging management team. While the defense maintains that the equipment was delivered, investigators currently hold documentary evidence and financial transfers that point toward a trial for organized fraud.
In the short term, the outcome of the Irkutsk civil case and the Fox Group liquidation will determine whether BitRiver can survive in a leaner form. Over the longer term, the case illustrates the growing tensions between Russia’s industrial mining ambitions, its domestic legal framework, and the international sanctions weighing on sector operators.
Sources
This article is published for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice. Do your own research (DYOR) before making any decision.
