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Vladimir Smerkis was born on June 25, 1984 in Moscow.
Education
In 2002 he graduated from Ebakas College. In 2006 he graduated from the Russian Economic University named after G.V. Plekhanov with a degree in Marketing.
Career
2003-2007
From 2003 to 2007 he was a director of WeLoveWork, as well as the creator and editor-in-chief of the site RnbStyle.ru. From 2007 to 2008 he worked as a manager in the field of cultural direction of Red Bull. In 2008, he was a managing partner of MCA Communications and director of events at Global Point. From 2008 to 2009 he worked as the director of marketing and sales of the agency Travel Technology Group. From 2009 to 2010 he was the head of the directorate of Internet projects of the music channel A-One.
2010-2017
From 2010 to 2012, he worked at Mail.Ru Group, where he was first brand manager, and then deputy vice president for international development.
From 2012 to 2017, he was a managing partner and co-owner of a digital agency Digital360.ru.
In March 2017, he became the managing partner of The Token Fund. In November 2017, he founded Tokenbox, where he is also a managing partner.
2022: Appointment as Director of Binance in Russia
On January 11, 2022, the cryptocurrency Binance exchange announced the appointment of Vladimir Smerkis as director of the company in. Russia The main tasks of the head of the representative office will be:
- strengthening Binance's presence in Russia;
- work on legitimization and GR interaction with the aim of mass adaptation of blockchain in the country;
- marketing and PR presence;
- working with the developer community to develop the Binance Smart Chain;
- NFT and GameFi projects, as well as metaverse.
It was also announced the appointment of the ex-director of the reporting collection and processing department of non-bank financial institutions Bank of Russia Olga Goncharova to the position of GR-director of the Binance crypto exchange in Russia and. CIS[1]
2023: Leaving Binance
In early September 2023 Binance To EuropeGleb Kostarev , Vladimir Smerkis, director of the crypto exchange in Vostochny and director of the company in the CIS, announced their departure from the cryptocurrency exchange. It comes after Binance allowed a full exit from the market. RUSSIAN FEDERATION
 | Friends, today is my last day at Binance. I am leaving the position of VP, responsible for Eastern Europe, the CIS, Turkey, Australia and New Zealand, - wrote Gleb Kostarev on Facebook (owned by Meta, which is recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation and banned). |  |
Smerkis, in turn, said on Instagram (owned by Meta, which is recognized in Russia as an extremist organization, its activities are prohibited) that since September 7, 2023 he has not worked at Binance.
| | In those two years, I haven't done the business, investment, consulting, marketing, start-ups and education I love so much. I gave 1,000% of myself to the company. It's time to announce what I'll set aside my 35 hours for in a day that's freed up, "he wrote, vowing to share reasons for leaving and plans later. | |
Binance confirmed that both top executives left the company, but declined to comment further.
| | Some members of our team are moving to higher positions, some are moving beyond Binance. Some of them are engaged in new interesting projects. We stand with everyone. We are a single community, "wrote the head of the crypto exchange Changpeng Zhao on Twitter. | |
At the end of August 2023, Binance previously announced that it was considering a complete withdrawal from the Russian market. Over the past months, Binance has consistently limited opportunities for Russian users amid accusations of supporting circumvention of sanctions. Back in March 2023, the exchange closed access to p2p operations in US dollars and euros for Russians in connection with the sanctions, but they still had the opportunity to use other currencies.[2]
2025
Arrest in Moscow
On May 18, 2025, it became known that the Zamoskvoretsky Court of Moscow arrested the former head of the Binance crypto exchange in the CIS and co-founder of the Blum crypto application Vladimir Smerkis. He is a defendant in a criminal case on fraud on an especially large scale.
Details of the proceedings as of the specified date were not disclosed. It is known that the case was initiated under Part 4 of Art. 159 of the Criminal Code - fraud committed by an organized group or on an especially large scale. Such acts are punishable by imprisonment for up to 10 years with a fine of up to 1 million rubles or in the amount of the convict's salary or other income for a period of up to three years or without it and with restriction of freedom for up to two years or without it.
| | The Zamoskvoretsky District Court granted the investigator's request to choose a preventive measure in the form of detention against Vladimir Smerkis, who was detained in a large-scale fraud case, law enforcement agencies told TASS. | |
At the same time, the Blum Telegram channel published a message that Smerkis resigned as marketing director and is no longer involved in the development of the project. It is emphasized that Blum's daily activities "continue as usual."
Smerkis left Binance in September 2023 shortly after the crypto exchange allowed the possibility of leaving the Russian market. Then the top manager explained his decision with "new challenges," without going into any details. In April 2024, Smerkis became the co-founder of the Blum project - a crypto exchange operating in the form of a Telegram mini-application. As of April 2025, more than 92 million people used the service, which allows trading cryptocurrency assets.[3]
Damage in a fraud case - $100 thousand.
Former head of the crypto exchange Binance CIS in and co-founder of the crypto game Blum Vladimir Smerkis is accused of especially large-scale fraud, the damage for which is about $100 thousand. This was reported in May 2025 in law enforcement agencies. Russian cryptoblogger Oleg Polunin was recognized as a victim in the case of especially large-scale fraud (Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The Zamoskvoretsky court Moscow initiated the arrest of Smerkis in the framework of a criminal case on fraud on an especially large scale.[4]
Notes
- ↑ The ex-head of the Central Bank department will take the position of GR-director of the Binance crypto exchange in the Russian Federation and the CIS
- ↑ Two top managers in charge of Russia Binance announced their departure
- ↑ Former top manager of Binance became a defendant in a fraud case
- ↑ TASS: co-founder of the crypto game Blum is accused of fraud worth almost $100 thousand.
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