Cryptocurrencies Are ‘Certainly’ Being Used to Circumvent Russian Sanctions – Featured Bitcoin News

According to the European Central Bank (ECB), cryptocurrencies can be used by Russians to evade sanctions. ECB President Christine Lagarde warns crypto firms against becoming “accomplices” in the crime.

Lagarde is Unconvinced That Crypto Is Being Used To Evade Russian Sanctions

Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), said Tuesday at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Summit that cryptocurrencies are “certainly” being used by Russian firms and individuals to bypass sanctions. After Russia invaded Ukraine, a growing number of nations have imposed severe sanctions on Russian entities.

Expressing concerns over crypto’s continued use, the ECB chief said:

They can be used in order to avoid the international sanctions against Russia.

“A specific number of players, either individuals or corporates, are obviously trying to convert their rubles into crypto assets,” she added, noting that there are rising volumes of transactions going from the ruble to stablecoins and from stablecoins to other digital assets.

The ECB president warned cryptocurrency firms not to become accomplices in this crime.

All those involved in the exchange, transaction, or offering of services in relation crypto assets have been made aware that they are complicit in the circumvention of sanctions.

Lagarde believes that cryptocurrency can be used to bypass Russian sanctions. However, experts, such as the chief executives of Chainalysis, a blockchain analytics company, and Coinbase, have stated that crypto isn’t an effective tool.

A senior U.S. Treasury Department official stated last week that crypto cannot be used to bypass sanctions in large numbers. FBI Director Christopher Wray similarly said that Russia’s ability to circumvent sanctions with cryptocurrency is “highly overestimated.” Carol House, the director of cybersecurity for the National Security Council, also said that crypto is an ineffective tool for circumventing sanctions.

Lagarde, however, isn’t the only one concerned about crypto being used to bypass sanction. In the U.S., Senator Elizabeth Warren is deeply concerned; she introduced a crypto sanctions compliance bill last week that has been described by an industry expert as “unnecessary, overbroad, and unconstitutional.”

What do you think about ECB Chief Christine Lagarde’s warning? Please comment below.

Kevin Helms

Kevin is a graduate of Austrian Economics. He discovered Bitcoin in 2011, and has been an advocate ever since. His main interests are in Bitcoin security, open source systems, network effects, cryptography, and intersections between economics, cryptography, and Cryptography.