Rogue states dodge economic sanctions, but is crypto in the wrong?
When the United States first began going after crypto companies for violating its economic sanctions rules, it didnt exactly start with a bang.In December, the Treasury Departments Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced a settlement with crypto wallet provider BitGo after the Palo Alto firm failed to prevent persons apparently located in the Crimea region, Iran, Sudan, Cuba and Syria from using its non-custodial secure digital wallet management service. The penalty for the 183 apparent violations of U.S. sanctions? An underwhelming $98,830.This was the first published OFAC....
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"Digital assets and payments systems could harm the efficacy of our sanctions” if left unchecked, the Treasury said. The United States Department of the Treasury has issued a review on sanctions and suggested the government do more to develop its infrastructure and policies in regards to digital assets.In an Oct. 18 report, the Treasury Department said the growing use of digital assets was hampering the implementation of sanctions while balancing funds from legitimate humanitarian organizations. The department suggested that better communication between itself and the crypto industry,....
Russia is preparing to authorize international crypto payments but people involved in the industry doubt this would allow the country to circumvent sanctions. At the same time, the United States has been tightening the noose, recently targeting the use of cryptocurrencies to dodge the financial restrictions imposed by the West with new legislation in Congress.
Russian Crypto Experts Claim Circumventing Sanctions With Cryptocurrency Is a ‘Great Illusion’
This week, Russian authorities announced they had started developing a mechanism for cross-border settlements....
Crypto use is likely to grow among ordinary citizens of both nations — though it won’t help Russia’s elite dodge economic restrictions. With the concerns of Janet Yellen and Hillary Clinton notwithstanding, there isn’t enough cryptocurrency in the world to bail out Russia from the economic hole which it now finds itself to be settling into. Even if there were a large enough supply, it probably wouldn’t enable the state to escape the scourge of a Western embargo.As David Carlisle, director of policy and regulatory affairs at Elliptic, told Cointelegraph: “It’s critical to keep in mind that....
The economist David Dodge, the former seventh governor of the Bank of Canada, says gold is an “antique instrument,” and he believes Canada’s central bank got rid of its gold reserves for this very reason. Despite saying gold is an outdated financial tool, Dodge said that the leading crypto asset bitcoin (BTC) has no place in the Bank of Canada’s reserves.
David Dodge: The Bank of Canada ‘Holding This Antique Instrument of Stability Called Gold Really Didn’t Make Any Sense’
David Dodge, the former seventh governor of the Bank of....
More cryptocurrency solutions keep appearing on the scene for Venezuelan residents as U.S. sanctions weigh on Nicolás Maduro’s government, including heavy restrictions on the circulation of foreign exchange transactions, driving people to find on crypto a way to circumvent such hurdles and the economic crisis. Venezuelan Freelancers Find Ways to Circumvent U.S. Sanctions by Using Crypto Venezuela Workers, a Venezuelan freelancing platform, had emerged to connect local freelancers with global employers who are seeking to pursue some project or performing a specific task. But....