Central Bank of Russia: Banning the use of cryptocurrencies by ordinary Russians and financial institutions

According to news on March 5, the Ukrainian government wants to implement a comprehensive crackdown on Russian cryptocurrency users due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. A number of other countries have also expressed concern that Russia could use cryptocurrencies to circumvent Western sanctions.

However, one of the biggest proponents of banning cryptocurrencies from ordinary Russians and financial institutions is actually the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) itself. According to local news outlet tass.ru on Thursday, the CBR continues to stand by its proposal to ban the issuance, mining and circulation of cryptocurrencies in the Russian Federation. A CBR official said: “The central bank currently supports the position previously announced and published on the official website.” (Cointelegraph) Earlier in February, Russian regulators reported that cryptocurrencies cannot be used for payments.