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Crypto included in EU’s sanctions against Russia and Belarus

The EU’s amendments to adopt further targeted sanctions and clarified cryptocurrency’s inclusion are meant to address concerns that Russia might use crypto for evading sanctions.

Image by: Wikimedia Commons

Thu, 10 Mar 2022, 15:49 pm UTC

The European Union has issued a clarification on its sanctions against Russia and Belarus. According to the EU, crypto assets are included in the sanctions against Russia and its ally in response to its invasion of Ukraine.

In a March 9 announcement, the EU said that crypto assets fall under the scope of “transferable securities.” This means that crypto is included in the scope of sanctions the bloc imposed on Russia for invading Ukraine as well as Belarus for its involvement.

Previously, there were concerns that Russia might use crypto in an attempt to evade sanctions by Western powers. The EU’s amendments to adopt further targeted sanctions and clarified cryptocurrency’s inclusion are meant to address those concerns.

“These amendments create a closer alignment of EU sanctions regarding Russia and Belarus and will help to ensure even more effectively that Russian sanctions cannot be circumvented, including through Belarus,” European Commission added.

The EC clarified that for the sanctions against Russia, loans and credit involving crypto are covered as well. “The EU confirmed the common understanding that loans and credit can be provided by any means, including crypto assets, as well as further clarified the notion of ‘transferable securities’, so as to clearly include crypto-assets, and thus ensure the proper implementation of the restrictions in place,” the EC added.

The amendment to the sanctions against Russia also added new restrictions on the export of radio communication and maritime navigation technology. The list of state-owned enterprises subject to financing limitations now includes the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping.

Another 160 individuals have been added to the list of persons identified as having taken “actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine.”

Of the 160 individuals added to the list, 14 are identified as “oligarchs and prominent business people involved in key economic sectors providing a substantial source of revenue to the Russian Federation” as well as their family members. These high-profile individuals are involved in the digital industries, telecom, metallurgical, agriculture, and pharmaceutical sectors.

Meanwhile, the remaining 146 individuals are identified as members of the Russian Federation Council. The EC said that they “ratified the government decisions of the ‘Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance between the Russian Federation and the Donetsk People's Republic and the ‘Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance between the Russian Federation and the Luhansk People's Republic’”.

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