Digital assets between risk and potential

The article systematizes the barriers and development trajectories of digital assets at the intersection of law, technology and markets. Drawing on statutes, supervisory materials and practice-oriented studies, it presents an analytical review with qualitative synthesis; special attention is paid to the Russian regulatory framework and cross-country differences in know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering rules. Legal ambiguity over status and taxation remains the dominant constraint. Material risks are concentrated in off-chain infrastructure (custody services, exchanges, bridges) and in unaudited smart-contract code; fragmented infrastructure and limited liquidity raise costs, while regulatory divergence hampers cross-border settlements. At the same time, digital assets can enhance settlement efficiency and transparency, broaden access to financial services, and foster decentralized intermediation and central-bank digital currencies. The paper outlines priorities: harmonized terminology and requirements, robust custody and code-audit standards, interoperable supervisory data formats, and effective loss-recovery mechanisms.