The European Union proposed banning transactions on 11 crypto platforms as part of its 21st sanctions package against Russia. Kaja Kallas, vice president of the European Commission, announced measures that also target banks, weapons manufacturers, and oil traders, among other entities outside the EU. Kallas stated, “We will also tighten our ban for crypto-asset services to certain third countries, add new designations, and ban transactions on 11 crypto platforms,” in a post on X.
The proposal aims to expand EU sanctions beyond Russian banks and energy revenues to crypto firms alleged to assist Moscow in circumventing restrictions related to its war in Ukraine. However, the Commission did not disclose the names of the 11 targeted crypto platforms.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen mentioned that the package includes bans on 31 additional Russian banks and 20 entities from third countries, which encompasses banks, crypto platforms, and oil traders. Von der Leyen indicated that these targets have served sanctioned Russian individuals or helped circumvent EU measures.
This EU proposal follows the UK’s May 26 sanctions against Huobi Global S.A., the parent company of HTX, for alleged support of financial networks linked to Russia. UK authorities cited reasonable grounds to suspect that HTX facilitated services for sanctioned entities A7 Limited Liability Company and Garantex, both associated with the Russian government.
HTX has denied these allegations, asserting that the sanctioned entity operates separately from the exchange. A report indicated that HTX processed approximately $21.06 billion in high-risk crypto flows between 2021 and May 2026, with at least $7.64 billion linked to high-risk Russian entities and darknet markets.
The UK sanctions received criticism from blockchain researchers. They warned that imposing broad sanctions could negatively affect legitimate users and undermine the efficacy of compliance tools designed to trace illicit funds.
