South Korean crypto exchanges move to ban Russian users

In light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, South Korean crypto exchanges like Gopax, Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit have placed restrictions on Russian addresses, Korean local media reported on Friday.

South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges have made this move in line with the South Korean government which imposed sanctions on Russia.

In the latest move to join Western countries' efforts to ratchet up sanctions against Moscow, South Korea has moved to cut operations with Russia's central bank and immobilise any assets held by the bank. The South Korean Finance Ministry has clarified that their sanctions will be "in line with US financial sanctions".

The South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges have opted to block Russian-based users' IP addresses. This action comes in response to the Ukrainian government's request that exchanges implement a blanket ban on Russian cryptocurrency accounts. While most worldwide exchanges have publicly declined to accept Ukraine's request, citing ethical concerns about decentralisation, South Korean exchanges have still decided to block Russian IP addresses.

It is noteworthy to mention the volume of the BTC/RUB trading pair rose more than 240 per cent above the 30-day trailing average in RUB terms on February 28 and has been steadily rising ever since. Moreover, the USDT/RUB trade volume surpassed 1.3 billion for the first time in over eight months. This
hints toward the fact that Russians are depending more and more on cryptocurrencies to hedge against inflation and evade western sanctions.

South Korean exchanges aren't the only ones who have blocked Russian IP addresses. Singapore and Switzerland have enacted crypto sanctions, and Japan is also considering the same.

Also read: Crypto markets tank over the weekend; Bitcoin below $39,000