Ally or suspect? Ukraine War Stress Test for Crypto

[TomPluz]

Crypto execs signal their readiness to comply with sanctions, but decentralization itself puts crypto in a vulnerable position.

It has been two weeks since Russia kicked off the first large-scale military action in Europe in the 21st century — a so-called “special operation” in Ukraine. The military conflict immediately triggered devastating sanctions against the Russian economy from the United States, the European Union and their allies and has put the crypto industry in a position that is both highly vulnerable and demanding.

As the world watches closely, the crypto space must prove its own standing as a mature and financially and politically responsible community, and it must defy the allegations of being a safe haven for war criminals, authoritarian regimes and sanctioned oligarchs. Up to this point, it has been going relatively well. But despite reassurances from industry opinion leaders, some experts say that crypto’s decentralized nature might seriously jeopardize the effort.

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/ally-or-suspect-the-war-in-ukraine-as-a-stress-test-for-the-crypto-industry


I am sure that the ongoing war right now in Ukraine by Russia has somehow put the limelight on the use of cryptocurrency in both sides of the fence. Right now, people are donating cryptos to the side of Ukraine most especially in coping the problems of the refugees while on the other hand there is a possibility that Russia can be using cryptocurrency as one of the many ways it can go around with sanctions.

[Fenix]

I do not think that Russia will be able to avoid international sanctions with the help of cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency as a means of payment should be exchanged in this case for any groups of goods. And it is impossible to move them in large volumes imperceptibly from one state to another. As a means of paying off debts and even settling trade transactions, cryptocurrencies are not so popular that the other party agrees to accept them.
Inside Russia itself, the situation here is not in favor of cryptocurrency. The Russian government has now banned even issuing currency to its citizens and taking it out of the country. Settlements within the country only in rubles. True, now deposits have already begun to be opened in Chinese yuan. To avoid the flight of capital abroad in Russia, it is unlikely that the free circulation of cryptocurrency will be allowed.