Experts reject concerns Russia will use crypto to bypass sanctions: 'Totally unfounded'
Experts on crypto policy argue that concerns expressed by high profile politicians about Russia evading economic sanctions using cryptocurrency are “totally unfounded.”
They say the crypto market is not nearly large enough nor deep enough to support the volume that Russia needs and that the country’s digital asset infrastructure is minimal.
Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the current President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde are among the high profile figures concerned that cryptocurrency could provide the means for Russia to bypass severe financial sanctions imposed for its invasion of Ukraine.
The country has been mostly cut off from the SWIFT cross border transaction system and businesses in America and other western countries are prohibited from doing business or transacting with Russian banks and the national wealth fund.
The Head of Policy at crypto policy promoter the Blockchain Association in the U.S. Jake Chervinsky posted a lengthy Twitter thread on Mar. 2 explaining how “Russia can’t and won’t use crypto to evade sanctions.”
1/ Russia can't & won't use crypto to evade sanctions.Concerns about crypto's use for sanctions evasion are totally unfounded. They fundamentally misunderstand:- how sanctions work- how crypto markets work- how Putin is actually trying to mitigate sanctionsI'll explain
Chervinsky stated three reasons it is unlikely that Russia will use crypto to skirt U.S. sanctions. The first is that the sanctions are not limited to USD, and it is now illegal for any US business or citizen to transact at all with Russia. He said, “It doesn't matter if they use dollars, gold, sea shells, or Bitcoin.”
The second reason is that financial necessities of a nation like Russia far
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