Russian Users in a Hot Spot After EU Imposes Crypto Ban

•  Blockchain.com has imposed restrictions on Russian nationals, in accordance with sanctions announced by the European Union. 
• Crypto.com has reportedly already blocked Russian user accounts. A similar move was made by Dapper Labs

In an email to its users, Blockchain.com announced that it would be locking the accounts of the Russians. The move follows the European Union’s (EU) eighth package of sanctions against Russia.

The European Union adopted a wide range of sanctions last week, aiming to hit Russia’s government, economy, and trade. Along with other measures, EU restrictions banned the provision of all crypto wallet, account, or custody services to Russian residents and entities.

In response to the EU’s statement from the latest reports by the RBC news agency, Russian users are given a deadline, October 27 to empty their accounts, later on, the accounts will be locked. Blockchain.com says this to its customers in a statement.

Due to EU sanctions, Blockchain dot com is currently restricted from providing custodial services and rewards to Russian citizens. Blockchain.com is currently prohibited from providing custodial services and rewards to Russian citizens.

The company to did not indicate whether the users will be able to have access to the blocked accounts.

Crypto exchange FTX, is registered in the island nation of Barbuda. the company is yet to impose restrictions on its users from the Russian Federation. This also applies to another platform that is popular in Russia, Guarantee, which continues to work with Russian investors.

Seychelles-registered Huobi Global, Okx, Kucoin, and Mexc Global have refrained from restricting Russian accounts in response to EU penalties, and Singapore-registered By bit has told the publication it would not impose sanctions against Russians.

Cryptocurrency has been viewed as a tool allowing Russians to export money and circumvent financial sanctions. The whole idea of legalizing cross-border crypto payments has been gaining traction in Moscow and other authorities.

According to a recent statement by the head of the parliamentary Financial market committee, Anatoly Aksakov, the EU’s decision to tighten the crypt restriction could not potentially stimulate the development of Russia’s own market for digital assets.