Note that this is not the first time that restrictions on interaction with cryptocurrencies have been imposed on Russian citizens. In particular, in the second half of April 2022, such instructions appeared in another package of sanctions from the EU.

Because of this, the cryptocurrency exchange Binance restricted the operation of accounts of users from the Russian Federation, whose accounts contained coins in the equivalent of more than 10 thousand euros. They were no longer able to conduct transactions and were only able to withdraw funds from their account.

Such restrictions did not apply to people who live outside the Russian Federation. Here is a relevant screenshot of the notification alerting about the restriction.

Binance exchange notification about restrictions

Now, the restrictions will become even stricter, with the result that the mentioned limit will be reduced to zero, that is, any amount. Which means that Russian residents will be able to use either local platforms or decentralized exchanges paired with non-custodial wallets.

Blocking cryptocurrencies in Russia

The new sanctions package was a response to the “referendum” held by the Russian authorities in Ukraine. As noted by Bloomberg, the package of restrictions primarily includes sanctions against government officials and those involved in the organization of the “referendum”. The European Commission also proposes a new ban on imports of Russian products, which would result in a loss of revenue equivalent to 7bn euros.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen commented on the developments.

We are going to make the Kremlin pay for further escalation.

Ban on interaction with cryptocurrencies

The new sanctions package also proposes restricting the withdrawal of digital assets from Russia, as well as banning European companies from providing access to wallets, accounts and custodial services to all Russian citizens and companies registered in that country.

Here is another rejoinder from Ursula von der Leyen, cited by Coindesk.

The fake referendums held by the Russian Federation in the occupied territories are an illegal attempt to seize territories and change international borders by force.

So, what does the ban mean for Russian citizens to interact with European cryptocurrency companies? Most likely:

• RF residents will no longer be able to register with and fully use popular cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance. As a reminder, from the end of July 2021, KYC proof of identity on this and many other platforms has become mandatory. Without showing their own documents, users will be restricted from withdrawing funds as well as trading in digital assets;
• already registered Russian residents will not be able to use popular crypto-exchanges to trade and keep any amounts there. Accordingly, it will no longer be possible to use the platforms’ functionality, such as stop-loss, limit orders and other functions, nor will it be possible to conduct normal buying or selling of cryptoassets;
• Similar to the events of April 2022, exchanges will most likely allow for withdrawals to third-party wallets, with a certain timeframe allocated for that purpose.

It is important to understand that such restrictions will not affect the usual non-custodial wallets like MetaMask, Phantom, Avalanche Core, Ledger and so on, because they operate autonomously. That said, it’s worth noting that the same MetaMask connects to the Etherium blockchain via the Infura node, and that company is subject to regulatory guidance.

MetaMask cryptocurrency wallet


For example, in March 2022, MetaMask representatives accidentally restricted access to the wallet for users from Venezuela. Accordingly, the same can be applied to Russian residents, taking into account their IP addresses, making it impossible to interact with the wallets.


The only remaining exchange options after the mass blocking are decentralised exchanges such as Uniswap. Although it’s worth noting that smart contracts can add addresses to a blacklist, as the cryptocurrency community was recently convinced by the actions of Circle. As a reminder, it’s the USDC stablecoin issuer that blocked certain addresses for interacting with the coin after they were found to be associated with the Tornado Cash mixer.

Blocking cryptocurrency addresses with USDC at the smart contract level


Overall, cryptocurrency users from the Russian Federation could indeed face serious restrictions if a massive ban is implemented. Most likely, some non-custodial wallets along with decentralised exchanges will not implement IP blocking due to the actions of Infura representatives, meaning that it will still be possible to exchange coins. However, working with popular centralized exchanges and their trading tools will clearly have to be forgotten.


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