Overview
- Under a new sector-wide rule, crypto firms and decentralized platforms based in Russia are banned from offering services that move or swap digital assets.
- The bloc also bans Russia’s digital ruble and the ruble‑pegged RUBx token and bars any EU help to build or run the digital ruble.
- EU residents are now prohibited from using Russian or Belarusian crypto platforms or DeFi services, and a new rule outlaws “netting” schemes that settle Russia‑linked payments without moving money across borders.
- The package targets cross‑border banking workarounds by listing 20 Russian banks and four foreign institutions tied to Russia’s SPFS messaging network, according to Chainalysis.
- Investigators say the EU also sanctioned TengriCoin, known as Meer.kg, after tracking the A7A5 stablecoin rail that has handled about $119.7 billion, and the measures single out intermediary hubs such as Kyrgyzstan, China, the UAE, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Belarus.