Russia's new crypto law is built to help the government get paid by other countries, not to let ordinary Russians invest — neutral for the world, restrictive for Russian savers.

• Russia passed a crypto law meant to receive payments from other countries, sidestepping the financial system it's been cut off from.
• Regular Russians are capped at buying about $3,700 of crypto a year, so it does little for everyday investors.
• The tight limit on citizens is meant to stop "capital flight" — people moving their savings out of rubles and into crypto.
• Russia wants to keep money inside the country and prop up the ruble, not encourage Bitcoin adoption at home.

Outlook: Expect Russia to lean on crypto for cross-border trade while keeping a tight leash on how much its own citizens can move out of rubles.