Sanctions are not for everyone: which crypto exchanges continue to work with Russians – Bits Media

Cryptocurrency trading platforms are restricting Russian clients one after another. However, not everyone does this. We publish the full list.

The US Treasury Department and the European Central Bank announced in early April, that sanctions against the Russian economies will be useless, if access to cryptocurrency platforms is not blocked, cut off from the world market.

American crypto exchange Coinbase said, that will comply with the requirements of the White House and has blocked 25,000 addresses of clients from Russia. In mid-April, the London EXMO exchange reported, that it sold the Russian part of the business. 21 april, The world's largest exchange Binance has left Russian users with an upper limit on the amount of assets of €10,000 and the opportunity to withdraw assets.

Although at the end of February representatives of crypto exchanges, despite calls to block Russian accounts, stated, that they won’t block everyone. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao stated literally:

“Sanctions affect only the top of the Russian government, military and law enforcement agencies. We count, that companies cannot simply take and freeze users' assets. We must follow the sanctions lists, and not come up with your own sanctions".

It may seem, that by the end of spring all major sites began to follow the instructions of European or American officials, however, in reality this is not the case.

We at Bits.media have compiled a list of platforms, who outlined their position on working with Russians. The sample takes into account the trading volume for the last 24 hours and platform rating:

1.       Binance (₽1 355,753 billion trading volume per day; 9.9 exchange assessment on CoinMarketCap) – at the beginning of March the company, registered in the Cayman Islands, on its own initiative banned Russians from using Visa and Mastercard cards for depositing and withdrawing funds. There is now a trading restriction for users with assets of more than €10,000, allowing only withdrawal of funds to other addresses.

2.       FTX (₽156 billion; 8.3) – at the end of February, the American crypto exchange warned, that users are from Russia, sanctioned, will be blocked immediately. The exchange is currently working with Russians, however, the company is actively cooperating with US regulatory authorities and continues to discuss the issue of introducing blocking.

3.       Coinbase (₽211 billion; 8.4) – the largest American crypto exchange blocked about 25,000 accounts from Russia, related to legal entities or individuals, sanctioned. The exchange stated, that it plans to continue to adhere to the policy of complying with restrictions.

4.       KuCoin (₽202 billion; 7.6) – CEO of the Hong Kong crypto exchange Johnny Liu said, that the platform adheres to neutrality and operates within the legal framework of the Seychelles. Without a local law requirement, the platform does not intend to block users from any other country.

5.       Bitfinex (₽45 billion; 7.2) – Chief Technical Officer of a subsidiary of the world’s largest stablecoin provider Tether, Paolo Ardoino, stated, that the company will not unilaterally block users from Russia.

6.       Gemini (₽9 billion; 6.9) – the New York company does not give a clear answer to the question about working with Russians, however, emphasizes, which is located in the jurisdictions of the USA and Great Britain and will have to comply with the requirements of the legislators of these countries. The exchange does not officially operate in Ukraine and Russia.

7.       Bitstamp (₽22 billion; 6.8) – the Luxembourg-based cryptocurrency exchange stated in a commentary for Verdict, that cooperates with all regulatory authorities and complies with all sanctions, however, the company is not seeing any increased activity from Russia. Registration on the exchange is currently available for Russians.

8.       Bithumb (₽65 billion; 6.4) – in early March, the South Korean crypto exchange began blocking the IP addresses of Russian users, supporting sanctions, introduced by the South Korean government. Such popular South Korean crypto exchanges as Upbit have joined the restrictions, Gopax, Raven и coinone.

9.       OKX (₽283 billion; 6.5) - crypto exchange, registered in the Seychelles, at the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, together with Binance, opposed the widespread blocking of Russian users, although over the past month the company has not commented on its attitude to sanctions. Now Russians can freely register and trade on the stock exchange.

10.   Huobi Global (₽179 billion; 7.3) – the Chinese exchange continues to serve Russian clients and has not announced any changes in policy.

11.   Exmo (₽8 billion; 4.5) – despite the sale of part of the Russian business, the company opposes the blocking of all residents of Russia. Co-founder of the exchange Ivan Petukhovsky said, that this is contrary to the basic principles of the crypto industry. However, the exchange intends to comply with the restrictions, if required by law.

12.   Kraken (₽60 billion; 7.8) – at the end of February, platform CEO Jesse Powell said, that the platform cannot block the accounts of Russian users without a corresponding legal requirement. However, he warned, that Russians should be prepared for this, that demands may appear. Later, early March, Powell confirmed, that the exchange will not touch Russian accounts without legal grounds.

13.   Gate.io (₽162 billion; 7.4) – the last comment on the situation was given by the Chinese cryptocurrency exchange at the end of March. The company said, that they do not plan to block users from any regions, unless there are grounds for this and an appropriate decision on the part of the authorities.

14.   Coincheck (₽3 billion; 6.7) – President of the Tokyo crypto exchange Satoshi Hasuo said, that the company will cooperate with the Japan Virtual and Crypto Asset Exchange Association (Jvcea), To understand, what specific measures will help limit the ability of Russians to circumvent sanctions using digital currencies.

15.   Bitget (₽17 billion; 4.5) – Singapore crypto exchange announced, that he is not going to follow the example of other platforms and will not revise his policy towards Russia. Against, the platform intends to expand the list of services for Russians.

Most crypto exchanges are now simply keeping silent, Waiting for the development of events. FTX has not yet responded to Bits.media’s clarifying questions., Coinbase, Bitfinex, Gemini, Bybit, Blockchain.com, EXMO and Kraken.