The White House, alongside the European Commission, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Italy, announced in the late hours of Saturday evening that they would be expelling certain Russian banks from the SWIFT payment system. In a joint statement, the parties wrote that: “This will ensure that these banks are disconnected from the international financial...Read More
ApplePay – Apple’s digital wallet service – is no longer providing support to Russian banks following sanctions from the United States and its western allies. Applications from Promsvyabank – a state-backed Russian bank – have also been removed from the App Store. Sanctioning Russia Apple’s removal of Russian financial services was reported by Russian news...Read More
The fifth-largest Ethereum mining pool – Flexpool – announced it will no longer provide services to customers in Russia. By doing so, the entity opposed Putin’s military operation and showed solidarity with Ukraine. The mining company became the first in its field to halt its endeavors on Russian soil. This comes a day after the...Read More
According to Elliptic data, people have donated $400,000 worth of Bitcoin to the Ukrainian nongovernmental organization – Come Back Alive. The latter provides military equipment, medical supplies, and training services to the local army. In addition, today (February 25), a mysterious contributor donated 80 BTC to a charity organization supporting the Ukrainian army. Calculated at...Read More
The Russian Ministry of Finance reportedly presented its draft legislation on digital asset regulations. The institution called upon enhanced protection rules and set a limit on annual cryptocurrency investments. The Latest Update Russia’s top authorities are still far from reaching a unanimous decision on how to approach the local cryptocurrency market. The Bank of Russia...Read More
The Russian Finance Ministry introduced public notices and said they started developing a comprehensive regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry. During the discussions, citizens and financial market players will be able to give their proposals on the matter. What Has Happened so Far? Ever since the start of 2022, Russia’s top authorities haven’t been able...Read More
Despite Vladimir Putin’s request, the Bank of Russia and the Finance Ministry did not shake hands on a single solution regarding cryptocurrency regulations. While some reports indicated that the largest country by landmass will not ban digital assets, it is still uncertain what legislation it will impose. No Resolution After the Meeting The central bank...Read More
The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has reportedly taken down four major illegal Dark Web sites, which have made over $260 million in cryptocurrency proceeds from the sale of stolen credit cards. Those platforms are Ferum Shop, Trump’s Dumps, Sky-Fraud forum, and UAS Store. The Latest Seizures Known as “carding” websites, these illicit platforms offer...Read More
A recent estimate by the Russian government has revealed that locals currently own more than 16.5 trillion rubles ($214 billion) worth of cryptocurrencies. Russians Control 12% of Crypto Market According to a Bloomberg report on Tuesday, this figure represents approximately 12% of the total value of global crypto holdings or one-third of the market cap...Read More
The Ministry of Finance proposed a regulatory framework that would enable cryptocurrency transactions to be carried out through Russia’s banking system, with infrastructure to monitor and identify traders. Crypto Regulations Instead of Ban According to a report by local media outlet RBU on Friday (January 27, 2022), the Ministry of Finance is proposing a modality...Read More
The central banking institution of the largest country by landmass – the Bank of Russia – urged the local government to impose a blanket ban on all cryptocurrency endeavors on Russian territory. It argued that digital assets remind of a pyramid scheme, undermine the sovereignty of monetary policy, and threaten the local financial network. Russia...Read More
The leading Russian bank – Sberbank – created a blockchain exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracking prominent companies in the cryptocurrency industry, such as Coinbase and Galaxy Digital. This is the first such product in Russia, which allows local investors to delve into the digital asset market without having to purchase, store, or sell tokens. Russia Has...Read More
In August, the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized more than $2 million worth of digital assets linked to ransomware attacks committed by the Russian resident – Aleksandr Sikerin. The criminal is known for his connection to the notorious cyber gang REvil that has assaulted numerous US businesses in the recent past. REvil on The Spotlight...Read More
The Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Energy, and the State Duma want cryptocurrency mining in Russia to be a legalized business regulated as an entrepreneurial activity. However, the country’s central bank opposed such a move, citing the risks related to digital asset endeavors. Russian Crypto Mining Deserves “Respect And Regulation” According to a...Read More
According to a resent research, the population of the Eastern European state – Ukraine – is the most interested in digital assets. Russia and the USA ranked respectively second and third. Surpassing The Giants The cryptocurrency brokerage firm BrokerChooser took into account several factors such as the total number of digital asset owners and the...Read More
According to a recent survey, around three-quarters of Russian investors consider cryptocurrencies a better investment tool than gold. Less than 9% opined that the precious metal is superior, while 14% believe “familiar national currencies” are the best choice. Russians Prefer Crypto Than Gold The residents of the largest country by landmass seem to have a...Read More
Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange, Bybit, has increased its foray into the esports space by entering into a three-year partnership with Russia’s most prestigious esports club, Virtus.pro (VP). Bybit Becomes VP’s Official Partner According to a Wednesday press release shared with CryptoPotato, Bybit is now Virtus.Pro’s NFT Partner and exclusive Official Cryptocurrency Platform Partner, backing its formidable...Read More
A Russian court ordered Sberbank to restore access for a customer involved in Bitcoin trading. The authorities added that the largest bank in Russia should not have blocked the account as the client had provided all the necessary information about his cryptocurrency operations. Sberbank Had No Right to Ban The Account The Sverdlovsk Regional Court...Read More
Elvira Nabiullina – the Chief of Russia’s Central Bank – sounded a note of caution for investors to beware of the risks in the crypto market. She opined that digital assets are very volatile and warned investors to be wary of ”appalling” losses. Do Not Get Involved in Crypto The head of the Russian Central...Read More
Residents of the Chinese capital will receive 40 million renminbi ($6.2 million) of the digital currency. They can use two banking apps to apply to win one of the 200,000 so-called ”red packets”, each containing 200 yuan, as part of a lottery. Simultaneously, the governor of Russia’s central bank called digital currencies the future of...Read More
Russian cryptocurrency investors have started complying with authorities to provide information about their crypto dealings and pay the stipulated taxes. According to a report by local news outlet Izvestia, several accounting and legal firms, including FTL and PwC, noted that they had recorded a surge in compliance with the tax legislation. Cryptocurrencies Are Properties The...Read More
A large investor in Telegram’s failed Open Network (TON) has reportedly requested $100 million in compensation from the company. Otherwise, the investor – Da Vinci Capital – has warned with taking legal actions against the messaging platform. TON Investor Demands $100M Telegram’s TON initiative was among the most widely-discussed blockchain-related projects in the past few...Read More
Several weeks after signing legislation that required Russian officials to disclose their crypto holdings, the world’s largest country by landmass has gone a step further by prohibiting them from owning any digital assets. The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation has sent a letter to civil servants regarding their cryptocurrency holdings,...Read More
Digital currency plans across nations seem to be drawing out concerns from a host of commercial banks. As a result, several questions have emerged with regard to a CBDC’s impact on private banking sectors. Recently, Russia’s Association of Banks became the latest network to join the discussion. According to the Association, local member banks weighed...Read More
In the latest turn of events, the Russian Ministry of Finance has taken a harsh stance wrt cryptocurrency regulations. Crypto holders on not disclosing their digital assets (worth 45 million rubles or more) at least twice in a period of three years stand to face a jail term of up to three years. This, however,...Read More
En + Group has entered the crypto mining space in a joint venture with bitcoin miner hosting provider BitRiver. Reportedly, the joint venture known as Bit + already saw its first phase of a bitcoin mining facility set up and running with over 10 megawatt-hours of capacity provided by En + The two partners plan...Read More
A survey among over 2,000 Russian investors has placed cryptocurrency next to gold in terms of popularity. Moreover, younger investors aged below 30 have displayed significant favoritism towards digital assets. Crypto Ranks Above Gold Among Russian Investors According to the study published by the World Gold Council, investors from the world’s largest country by landmass...Read More
Russia’s relationship with cryptocurrencies and blockchain-based technology is undoubtedly a tumultuous one. While the country appears to support the nascent tech behind digital currencies, it’s also taking steps to limit their usage as much as possible. $8,000 of Crypto Per Retail Investor According to a new explanatory note that refers to a newly-passed law on...Read More
A report compiled by the blockchain forensics company Chainalysis indicated that cryptocurrency adoption is growing globally. By exploring four key metrics and separating the data country by country, the firm’s Global Crypto Adoption Index 2020 showed that Ukraine, Russia, and Venezuela lead the way. The metrics take into consideration the purchasing power parity (PPP) per...Read More
Former project manager at now defunct crypto investing firm Bitsonar, Yaroslav Shtadchenko, has filed a complaint with the U.S Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) accusing his former employer at Bitsonar of fraud. The accused, Bitsonar’s founder, Alexander Tovstenko, who was also a former clerk at the Ukrainian government hired Shtadchenko in 2018 “to provide consulting...Read More
