Comply With European Union Sanctions, Kraken Immediately Stop Service For Customers In Russia

JAKARTA - Kraken is now the latest cryptocurrency exchange to limit Russian user accounts on its platform by sanctions from the European Union. On October 19, Kraken sent an emailed statement to their clients in Russia announcing that they would stop services to Russian customers.

"Due to the new European law, we have to take action to limit your Kraken account," the company said. According to an emailed statement seen by Cointelegraph, Russian users will be able to withdraw their funds on demand.

"We will update our support center if there is a change," Kraken said. We apologize for the inconvenience caused.

Kraken did not specify whether there was a time limit to withdrawing funds from their apps for Russian citizens. A Kraken spokesman told Cointelegraph that the company complies with the laws and regulations in all jurisdictions' of its operations.

"Since the EU announcement, we have been working to make the necessary changes to comply with the latest sanctions package against Russia," the representative said.

The latest restrictions on Kraken are not the first time this crypto exchange has dealt with regulators forcing centralized exchanges to close certain accounts.

In February 2022, former Kraken CEO Jesse Powell condemned Canadian authorities for freezing crypto wallets involved in funding COVID-19 protests. He explicitly warned the public that Kraken could be forced to freeze some wallets by regulators, suggesting crypto investors to move crypto from the exchange.

"If you're worried about it, don't save your funds with a centralized or regulated guard. We couldn't protect you," Powell said at the time.

Powell also responded to Ukraine's call to block Russian user addresses on crypto exchanges, saying Kraken would not do so without a legal basis.

"I understand the reasons for this request, but, despite my deep respect for the Ukrainian people, @krakenfx cannot freeze our client's account in Russia without legal requirements to do so," Jesse Powell said in a tweet on Twitter last February.

By restricting Russian users to its platform, Kraken joins an increasing number of global crypto exchanges and wallets that stop serving clients in Russia in accordance with the latest EU sanctions against Russia.

As previously reported, several crypto companies, including Blockchain.com, Crypto.com and Local Bitcoins, have stopped their operations in Russia.

Bitfinex, one of the few exchanges previously opposed banning unsanctioned Russians from using its platform, appears to have also been forced to comply with the sanctions.

"We comply with all regulations in which we are bound and closely monitor this situation," Bitfinex senior PR manager Joe Morgan told Cointelegraph on October 20. Bitfinex chief technology officer Paolo Ardoino previously recommended that investors use non-custodial hardware wallets to better protect their funds.

The new crypto sanctions are part of the EU's eighth sanction package imposed on October 6. The sanction prohibits all crypto transactions and payments between companies regulated by the European Union and Russian users. The European Union initially adopted its first crypto sanctions against Russia in April, restricting Russian users or residents from trading if their holdings exceeded 10,000 euros by then.