Coinbase Denies Ukraine’s Request To Block Russian Users

Coinbase denies Ukraine’s request to block Russian users from the platform as we can see further in our latest coinbase news.

The Ukraine minister of Digital Transformation requested the major exchanges block Russian users but Coinbase denies Ukraine’s request to do so. Instead, Coinbase and others pointed towards compliance with international sanctions. Coinbase won’t institute a ban on coinbase transactiosn involving Russian addresses despite the request from the Ukrainian governemnt official to do so. A spokesperson for the US Exchange said:

“A unilateral and total ban would punish ordinary Russian citizens who are enduring historic currency destabilization as a result of their government’s aggression against a democratic neighbor.”

Happy to see that regulated exchanges will only comply with legal sanctions. Pressure to have them pick and choose who else to exclude is anti-democratic. It’s asking private corporations to ban persons without any public process.

— Jerry Brito (@jerrybrito) February 28, 2022

Ukraine raked in $20 million in BTC donations earmarked for military support after being invaded by Russian forces but it is aware that the enemy can just as easily use crypto to get sanctions and relieve economic pressure on the people. Over the weekend, Ukraine’s country vice prime minister and Minister of Digital Transformation appealed to all major exchanges to block addresses of Russian users. Fedorov tweeted:

 “It’s crucial to freeze not only the addresses linked to Russian and Belarusian politicians, but also to sabotage ordinary users.”

Coinbase joined a list of other crypto exchanges that declined to meet the Ukrainian government’s request. Binance is the world’s biggest crypto exchange by trading volume:

“Crypto is meant to provide greater financial freedom for people across the globe. To unilaterally decide to ban people’s access to their crypto would fly in the face of the reason why crypto exists.”

Kraken’s CEO Jesse Powell wrote:

Our mission is better served by focusing on individual needs above those of any government or political faction. The People’s Money is an exit strategy for humans, a weapon for peace, not for war.
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Crypto.com didn’t want to comment on the matter while FTX founder Sam Bankman Fried testified before Congress about blockchain but most, including Powell, make it clear that they will comply with sanctions if they are expanded to individual citizens. Coinbase is not available to Russian users but doesn’t restrict the clients from transacting with Russia-based addresses and the spokesperson said:

“We will continue to implement all sanctions that have been imposed, including blocking accounts and transactions that may involve sanctioned individuals or entities.”

The Russian government already got hit with sanctions from the UK, US, Europe, and a few other countries. The reports of Russia show long lines at ATM machines as people look to pull out cash in the event of a crisis.