Zelenskyy has tightened sanctions against Russia: crypto services have been restricted

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree putting into effect the decision of the National Security and Defense Council on amendments to sectoral sanctions imposed on Russian financial institutions.

This was reported by the presidential press service.

This is a renewal of sanctions that were introduced in February 2023 for a period of 50 years. At that time, the restrictions extended to all Russian banks, non-bank credit organizations, payment system operators, stock market participants, insurance companies, and investment funds.

The new amendments were prepared by the National Bank of Ukraine taking into account modern mechanisms for circumventing sanctions. From now on, restrictions also apply to operators of platforms for the circulation of digital financial assets, cryptocurrency services, financial platforms, and clearing organizations.

In addition, the sanctions prohibit transactions with virtual assets and the use of platforms, services, and products that allow transactions with financial and digital assets.

As noted in the Office of the President, certain provisions of the decision correspond to the approaches laid down in the 19th and 20th packages of sanctions of the European Union against Russia. At the same time, Ukraine has taken a broader approach, extending sanctions to all virtual assets backed by the Russian ruble, in order to make it impossible to use cryptocurrencies to circumvent restrictions.

In particular, Presidential Advisor and Commissioner for Sanctions Policy Vladyslav Vlasyuk emphasized that sanctions policy must be constantly updated in accordance with new schemes that Russia uses to circumvent international restrictions.

“Sanctions cannot remain static while Russia is constantly changing the mechanisms for circumventing them. The renewal of sectoral sanctions means that not only what Russia used yesterday, but also the financial infrastructure it is creating to circumvent sanctions tomorrow, falls under restrictions,” Vlasyuk noted.

Also follow “Pryamim” on Facebook , X , Telegram , and Instagram.