Russian Evades Effects of U.S. Sanctions

Russian Evades Effects of U.S. Sanctions

Bethany Cougle and Jordan Mullin, Staff Reporter

 Crypto currency has become a staple piece in the global financial system. With its unavoidable presence in modern culture, it is no surprise that digital currency has seeped over into internal conflict. Russia has become increasingly dependent on cryptocurrencies with the detrimental backfire of their invasion of Ukraine. Due to Russian war crimes, the United States has imposed economic sanctions on Russia, but Russia has been unable to feel this punishment due to their dependency on crypto, leaving the U.S. to question how to regulate digital currency.

 Recently, Russia has been invading Ukraine. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of people have been killed, and more than 1.5 million people have fled the violence. The U.S. has reacted to this monstrosity by placing sanctions on Russia.

 Currently, the Russian ruble is worth less than 1 U.S. cent. Russians have evaded the effects of these sanctions by converting their money into crypto currency. 

  According to Elizabeth Warren, “For Putin’s oligarchs who are trying to hide, you know, a billion or two of their wealth, crypto looks like a pretty good option.”

 Currently, a bill is in process by the U.S. to have the authority to ban U.S. companies from processing cryptocurrency transactions with Russian accounts. The bill is not intended to impose a ban on all Russian cryptocurrency transactions.