According to a group of Russian Binance users, the crypto exchange no longer accepts local bank cards.
The cards, they said, cannot be used to deposit fiat currency on the exchange or to support the purchase of digital assets.
On Wednesday, several Russian users discovered a warning notice telling them that local bank cards are presently not supported.
“Please be informed. At this time, we do not support the bank cards issued in your country,” the notice said.
Possible Chain Reaction
Following the United States’ expansion of sanctions against Russia, which included a ban on US dealings with the Russian central bank, a number of financial institutions followed suit.
SWIFT, for example, recently stated that it is waiting to decide which financial institutions regulators wish to cut off from its global banking services.
Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s vice prime minister, urged all major cryptocurrency exchanges last week to prohibit Russian users and freeze their funds on Binance.
The post on the Binance exchange also included a positive note, stating that the company was “working on making this a possibility as soon as we can.”
Binance Mum At The Moment
However, no explanations for the removal of these local cards have been offered by Binance Russia’s Twitter or Telegram channels.
Interestingly, a Binance Russia representative said that there must be “some type of mistake.”
“Nothing was obstructed,” the representative claimed. “This is most likely an error f we make a change, we notify our users.”
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Total crypto market cap at $1.905 trillion in the daily chart | Source: TradingView.com
Sberbank On The ‘Hit’ List?
According to some sources, Binance is refusing cards issued by Sberbank, one of Russia’s biggest banks.
Sberbank is one of the financial institutions that the West previously sanctioned, along with other major lenders.
According to a Reuters article, Binance is blocking the accounts of any Russian finance institution that are sanctioned.
Crypto For All Russian Binance Users?
According to the exchange’s representative, they will not prohibit Russian Binance users “unilaterally.”
“Crypto is intended to create greater financial independence for people all across the world,” the representative said.
“To arbitrarily decide to deny individuals access to their crypto would be contrary to the very reason crypto exists,” he continued.
Russia Under Pressure
As previously reported by various news outlets, numerous areas of Russia’s economy are currently feeling the heat as a result of the country’s attack on Ukraine.
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Featured image from CryptoSlate, chart from TradingView.com