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Early this year, Russia invaded Ukraine.The invasion caused millions of Ukraine were forced to flee their homes and about one-third of the population was displaced. Countries and individuals from all around the world have come to help Ukraine. Crypto donations make up the major part of donations. Ukrainian groups and pro-Russian groups have both received crypto donations in huge numbers since the start of war.
A Chainalysis report revealed on Friday that over 54 pro Russian groups have received crypto donations worth $2.2 million to finance war in Ukraine. The majority of Donations were received in Bitcoin and Ethereum and equate to $1.45 million and $5,90,000, respectively. Next comes Tether, Litecoin and Dogecoin, in substantial quantities.
On the receiving end of funds are just a few top groups. One count even received $1M in crypto. Funds received are utilised to equip paramilitary groups. Funds received by half of the accounts are publicly requested support for militias located in Donetsk and Luhansk. These territories are sanctioned by the OFAC Foreign Assets Centrals.
Are Russians Invading Sanctions Using Crypto?
Earlier this year, the U.S Senator, Elizabeth Warren voiced the concern that crypto can be used to evade sanctions. Today Chainalysis mentioned in its report that a pro- Russia group is doing exactly the same thing. According to the report, Project Terricon, which has requested for crypto donations to fund Russian militia groups, have mentioned in their official website that they are cryptocurrency because of the imposition of sanctions.
However, Jony Levin, argued in March that it is less likely that crypto can be used to evade sanctions because tracking large amounts of transactions on blockchain is quite easy. Meanwhile, $2.2 million received by pro Russian groups is still less in comparison to tens of millions donated to Ukraine since March. Alex Bornyakov, Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Digital Transformation in Ukraine, has requested for the crypto donations since the start of war.
In March, Elliptic, a crypto analytics firm, said that the total donation received by crypto firms amounts to $64 million. However, at the time, Bornyakov said it was close to $100 million.
With a background in journalism, Ritika Sharma has worked with many reputed media firms focusing on general news such as politics and crime. She joined The Coin Republic as a reporter for crypto, and found a great passion for cryptocurrency, Web3, NFTs and other digital assets. She spends a lot of time researching and delving deeper into these concepts around the clock, and is a strong advocate for women in STEM.
