Belarus to test digital ruble as EU tightens crypto sanctions
The restrictions were introduced under a new sanctions package.
On April 23, the European Union adopted a fresh round of sanctions that, among other measures, bans all transactions involving Belarusian cryptocurrency organizations and crypto assets, Belsat reports.
The authors of the sanctions package argue that Belarus's government intends to "closely monitor the activities of crypto service providers operating in the country," creating "risks that crypto assets could be used by the regime to circumvent the EU's restrictive measures."
"To ensure that crypto assets are not used as a channel to bypass the Union's restrictive measures, Council Decision (CFSP) 2026/512 prohibits transactions with any crypto service providers established in Belarus, as well as with any decentralized platforms based in Belarus that enable the exchange or transfer of crypto assets," the EU document states.
Meanwhile, Belarus has yet to launch its digital ruble: starting July 1, 2026, the country will begin trial operations of its digital ruble platform, initially limited to transactions between legal entities and their counterparties. Following this phase, authorities plan to establish Belarus's first crypto bank based on the same platform.
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