Ukraine is now trying to expose cryptocurrency wallets used by politicians in Moscow amid warnings that Russia may be using digital coins to circumvent sanctions. The move comes as Western allies agree to expel some Russian banks from SWIFT, the global interbank payments system.
Ukrainian government seeks information on crypto assets from Russian and Belarusian officials
Kyiv authorities have appealed on social media for information about crypto wallets controlled by politicians in Russia and Belarus. On Saturday, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced on Twitter that the country’s crypto community will reward those who provide identifying details.
The Ukrainian crypto community is ready to offer a generous reward for any information about the crypto wallets of Russian and Belarusian politicians and their environment. War crimes must be prosecuted and punished! To share information, please contact Telegram: https://t.co/XHidwUQ8bE.
— Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) February 26, 2022
The awards will be funded by private donations, according to Artem Afian, an attorney who manages the effort. Quoted by Bloomberg, he said the campaign had previously received advice matching political figures with crypto addresses. The plan is to share them with major exchanges and blockchain forensics firm Chainalysis which monitors Russian transactions. Afian said:
We want them to understand that they are not welcome in Ukraine or in crypto.
Another report revealed that several trading platforms imposed restrictions on users based in the Russian Federation. Ukrainian crypto exchange Kuna told Forklog that it has removed all pairs with the Russian ruble and stopped deposits and withdrawals. Whitebit rejects new registrations from Russia while Cex.io does not accept or serve customers from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
The Kiev government has called for tougher sanctions against Moscow in the face of advancing Russian forces. The move to blacklist wallets belonging to Russian politicians comes as Ukraine itself resorts to using cryptocurrency to fund its defense efforts. Since the start of the invasion, the country has raised over $17 million in crypto donations.
Meanwhile, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Commission and several EU member states – France, Germany and Italy – have announced their commitment to withdraw “certain Russian banks ” of the SWIFT messaging network for interbank payments.
“This will ensure that these banks are disconnected from the international financial system and will harm their ability to operate globally,” their leaders said in a joint statement released late Saturday.
Tougher Western sanctions, aimed at isolating Russia from global finance, have raised concerns among analysts that Moscow may turn to cryptocurrency to circumvent growing restrictions. Russian institutions have been actively working to regulate crypto transactions, and the Ministry of Finance recently submitted a new draft law to the federal government.
Do you think Ukraine will be able to identify crypto wallets used by Russian politicians? Tell us in the comments section below.
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