The war between Russia and Ukraine has entered its third year. During this time, Western allies in Ukraine have imposed economic sanctions on Russia. Now, under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, the Russian government has begun a trial of using crypto for cross-border payments to bypass international sanctions.
Russia turns to crypto to bypass sanctions
In 2024, Russia has warmed up to digital assets as it explores an alternative to global financial systems to which it no longer has access. In July, it passed a bill legalizing crypto, just weeks after the Bank of Russia revealed it considered ‘crypto’ a viable alternative to SWIFT.
Reports show that the country is working on integrating its upcoming digital asset exchanges into the National Payment Card System. However, crypto can still not be used as legal tender for regular domestic transactions.
🚨 BREAKING 🚨
RUSSIA HAS STARTED A TRIAL OF
CROSS-BORDER PAYMENTS USING
CRYPT.RUSSIA TRADES $600 BILLION
ANNUALLY, WHICH IS ALMOST 30%
OF TOTAL CRYPTO MARKET CAP.ULTRA BULLISH FOR CRYPTO 🔥 pic.twitter.com/PgoJ65Waef
— Ash Crypto (@Ashcryptoreal) September 4, 2024
The crypto community is happy with the progress, attributing its success to international transactions Russia makes. The country annually trades about $600 billion in assets, which is 30% of the crypto market cap. According to CoinGecko, the global crypto market cap currently sits at $2.08 trillion.
According to sources, the pilot phase will focus on blue-chip companies before expanding to other connected and related industries. Mikhail Uspensky, an expert on digital asset legislation at the State Duma, says, “It is important to emphasize once again that the contours of the future experiment are completely at the mercy of the regulator.”
Russia, along with other members of BRICS, has been on a de-dollarization agenda for some time. In the last two years, the agenda has picked up momentum, inviting strategic countries to what many believe will be the death of the USD’s global dominance.
