Binance adds fiat currency restrictions for Russian users

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance continues introducing more restrictions for its Russian customers on its peer-to-peer (P2P) trading platform.

Binance P2P has banned Russian residents from using any other fiat currencies than the Russian ruble (RUB), Binance announced on its Telegram channel on Aug. 27.

Binance’s Russian clients residing outside the country have also been banned from using currencies like RUB, the euro (EUR), the U.S. dollar (USD) and the Ukrainian hryvnia (UAH).

In order to use the Russian ruble on Binance P2P, one has to have the Russian Know-Your-Customer (KYC) verification and reside in Russia at the same time, the exchange stated.

“We apologize for the inconvenience. If you have any questions or need assistance regarding this update, please contact Binance Customer Support,” Binance noted. The announcement has brought some attention from Binance’s Russian users, with the Telegram post having amassed nearly 700 user comments since publication at the time of writing.

The new restrictions have apparently mostly affected Russians that reside in other countries and need to convert their RUB from Russian banks to other currencies using Binance’s P2P service, according to multiple comments.

For example, one alleged Binance P2P user experienced difficulties in buying Tether (USDT) with RUB from the sanctioned bank Tinkoff Bank. “My account is verified abroad,” the alleged user noted, adding that she needed to transfer her Russian pay to Switzerland.

“If you’re in Switzerland, you should be taking your pay in francs,” one Telegram user commented. Another alleged Binance P2P user has also faced issues in transferring rubles to Kazakhstan.

“I have been in Kazakhstan for almost a year, I live and work here. But sometimes I need to transfer money from the Russian Federation, so for a year now I have been buying USDT for rubles and selling them for the Kazakh tenge,” the poster wrote in a chat with Binance customer support. The user complained about becoming unable to proceed with such transactions after Aug. 25.

Addressing the complaint, a Binance customer support manager noted that users need to meet all three requirements in order to use RUB on Binance, including providing the Russian KYC, the Russian nationality and the Russian proof of address.

Binance didn’t mention whether the latest restrictions for Russian citizens are related to the Western sanctions or rather new fiat currency restrictions taken by the Russian government amid the fall of the ruble.

According to local reports, banks have been introducing massive restrictions on fiat deposits and transfers, including 50% fees on USD transactions, amid ruble crashing through 100 RUB vs USD in mid-August.

Related: OKX and Bybit remove sanctioned Russian banks from payments list

Binance did not immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.

The latest restrictions by Binance join a series of other recent measures targeting Russian users. On Aug. 25, Binance removed sanctioned Russian banks like Tinkoff and Rosban from the list of available payments on its P2P platform.

The news came just a few days after Binance promoted its services on vDud, one of the biggest Russian YouTube channels run by Yuri Dud.

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