TL;DR Breakdown
- Ukraine’s vice prime minister has called on crypto exchanges to prevent Russian customers from trading.
- So far, major cryptocurrency exchange are yet to respond to the call.
- Ukraine is now taking Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT donations.
In a recent tweet, Ukraine’s vice prime minister Mykhailo Fedorov expressed his thoughts on digital currency exchanges banning Russian users from accessing their services. This development may contribute to further isolating Russia from the global digital economy. The crypto community has since shown support to the Ukrainian government; however, it remains unknown whether crypto exchanges will comply with Ukraine’s request.
Ukraine wants exchanges to ban Russian users
Fedorov requested “all-important digital assets exchanges to block Russian owners’ addresses.” He also inquired about digital wallets connected with Belorussian and Russian politicians, implying that the crypto community in Ukraine is prepared to pay a “large award” to anybody who brought him information on such addresses.
Mykhailo Fedorov went further to ask for a ban for Russian users from Facebook and Instagram. Facebook has already restricted some state media accounts, including restrictions relating to running advertisements and monetization.
Russia could suffer more following the Ukraine crisis
Following a slew of economic punishments imposed on Russia by its United States allies, the US has inquired for permission to impose additional financial sanctions. The request comes after the UK, France, Canada, and Germany froze the assets of Russia’s four largest banks.
The step taken by Ukraine could also inspire other countries to take similar action against Russia. This would be a major setback for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has been a vocal supporter of cryptocurrency.
Putin has been trying to use digital assets and blockchain to bypass sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and other countries. However, if more countries ban Russian addresses from accessing crypto exchanges, it could severely hamper Putin’s plans. It will be interesting to see how this situation develops and whether it leads to further escalation in Russia and the rest of the world.
It remains to be seen how crypto exchanges platforms will react to the vice prime minister’s plead to ban Russian addresses. However, this could be an essential step in furthering the isolation of Russia from the global digital economy. Putin has been a strong advocate for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, but if more countries restrict Russian addresses from accessing crypto exchanges, it could severely hamper his plans.
Current responses on blocking of the Russian addresses
This situation will be worth watching in the coming weeks and months. Kraken’s Jesse Powell said that such a change couldn’t be implemented “without a formal obligation to proceed with it” but warned Russian customers that kind of order “may be forthcoming.” Cryptocurrencies have been popular among investors because they offer a way to store value outside of the traditional financial system. They have also been popular among criminals because they offer a way to hide money and transactions.
Following the Russian aggression, several of the exchanges have expressed their backup for Ukraine. Demonstrating how quickly they can change their tune, Binance, for example, stated it was giving $10 million to aid the Ukrainian humanitarian catastrophe. Cryptopolitan also reported that the crypto community had donated over $17 million to the Ukrainian government and NGOs.
