Russia's Cross European Union Uses Cryptocurrency

JAKARTA The European Union is expanding Russia's economic restrictions by banning the use of cryptocurrencies as an alternative to international payments. This is the latest response from the European Union to Russia's actions towards Ukraine.

Launching Beincrypto, a referendum in Ukraine asked residents in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine whether they wanted to be independent of Ukraine itself. Just three hours after the vote was closed, the results were announced, raising doubts about the authenticity of the process. The result was not independently verified by other entities. The existing consensus is that the referendum "planted."

The European Union's ban on cryptocurrency services to Russia is part of an act of economic and political sanctions. Initially the ban limited Russia's payments to a value of €10,000 (9,700 US dollars). Now, the ban extends to all crypto payments.

This comes after reports emerged regarding Russia's surge in businesses using cryptocurrencies to get around existing sanctions. A European Union fund statement said, "The restrictions on crypto assets have been tightened by banning all wallets, accounts, or crypto asset storage services, regardless of the number of wallets (previously up to €10,000 are allowed).

"This package expands the scope of services that can no longer be provided to the Russian government or legal entities established in Russia: this now includes IT consultations, legal counsel, architecture, and engineering services. This is significant because it has the potential to weaken Russian industrial capacity because it relies heavily on imports of these services," according to a statement from the European Union.

The European Union said sanctions against Russia were successful. This action is considered to have " damaged Russia's ability to produce new weapons and repair existing weapons, as well as hamper the transport of its materials."