The European Union is including cryptocurrency platforms in its latest financial sanctions against Russia, marking a first for direct targeting of digital asset services.
The measures, part of the bloc’s 19th sanctions package, ban all cryptocurrency transactions for Russian residents and limit engagements with foreign banks linked to Russia’s alternative payment systems, according to a statement from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen released on Friday.
The package also aims to block transactions with entities operating in special economic zones in Russia.
“As evasion tactics become more sophisticated, our sanctions will evolve to stay ahead,” von der Leyen stated. “Thus, for the first time, our restrictive measures will target crypto platforms and prohibit cryptocurrency transactions.”
She added, “We are identifying foreign banks associated with Russian alternative payment systems, and we are limiting transactions with entities in special economic zones.”
The sanctions have not yet been finalized and require approval from all 27 EU member states.
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Von der Leyen indicated that these measures are a response to Russia’s “largest-scale drone and missile attacks against Ukraine,” which have included violations of EU airspace by Shahed drones in Poland and Romania.
Reportedly, Russian oil companies have utilized digital assets to bypass sanctions, executing tens of millions of dollars in monthly transactions using Bitcoin (BTC) and Tether’s USDt (USDT), as stated by Reuters in March, citing four sources familiar with the situation.
In July, the US Department of Justice charged Iurii Gugnin, also known as George Goognin and Iurii Mashukov, a Russian national living in New York, with 22 criminal charges, including laundering over $540 million through his crypto businesses, Evita Investments and Evita Pay, while facilitating transactions for sanctioned Russian entities.
Related: Swiss banks finalize first blockchain-based legally binding payment
Ukraine aims to strengthen financial resilience with Bitcoin reserve
On a different front, Ukraine is looking to bolster financial resilience by proposing a national Bitcoin reserve.
Ukrainian lawmakers are developing a proposal for a national Bitcoin reserve, with a draft bill nearing completion, as confirmed by Yaroslav Zhelezniak, a parliament member who told local media outlet Incrypted in May.
The proposal was announced at the Crypto 2025 conference in Kyiv on February 6. “We will soon present a draft law from the industry to create crypto reserves,” Zhelezniak remarked.
Bitcoin has gained recognition as a national reserve asset since March 7, when US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to establish a national Bitcoin reserve funded with BTC seized from criminal cases.
A month later, Swedish MP Rickard Nordin published an open letter urging Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson to consider Bitcoin as a national reserve asset, highlighting its growing recognition as a “hedge against inflation,” as reported by Cointelegraph on April 11.
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