Coinbase is likely to restrict rich Russian accounts

[kryptqnick]

This info seems very fresh (at least, I didn't see it in the news when I googled it in English), and I'm not 100% sure if it will be confirmed later, but my source is the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak. In his official telegram channel, he wrote that Coinbase will follow something similar to what Binance did when they restricted Russian wallets with over $10 worth of cryptos. He says that in case of Coinbase, the limit will be restricted access to wallets of Russian citizens whose balances are above 10,000 EUR. He says that the ability to top up the account is already restricted, and that the blocking of accounts will occur on May 31. Actions are explained by the approved package of EU and Switzerland's sanctions from April 10.

What do you think of such actions? Is it the problem of centralization or the strength of consolidated institutional response to you?

[jackg]

What do you think of such actions? Is it the problem of centralization or the strength of consolidated institutional response to you?

Maybe the weakness of people who hold funds on exchanges for too long and have too much trust in the custodians - coinbase would be the last exchange I'd store funds on if I were affiliated with Russia - binance's blocking was a bit unexpected to me but coinbase is quite well affiliated with Europe and North America and was set up in the US.

I heard news recently that investors in coinbase stock were speculating large amounts of crypto left the exchange a few weeks ago - I don't know whether this was related or not but maybe warnings were given to users in advance?

[_act_]

What do you think of such actions? Is it the problem of centralization or the strength of consolidated institutional response to you?

There is nothing to think about, Coinbase is centralized and have the power to freeze anyone's account that was registered with the company. For anyone that wants to have his own control, the person should use a noncustododial wallet, not custodial wallet or exchange account which can be be freezed.

[mk4]

Re: Coinbase is likely to restrict rich Russian accounts

Wait, isn't Coinbase not providing services to people from Russia in the first place? I don't see Russia on their "available countries" page: https://www.coinbase.com/places

[dothebeats]

A huge blow to Russians, but there is nothing that we can do at all. Coinbase operates as a centralized exchange, and this action by them is not really surprising especially if they are pressed to do such actions. The question is, where will the money go after they're frozen? Well perhaps it'll remain in Coinbase's possession, but it could still be seized or surrendered to relevant governments after all.

This is why you don't keep money on exchanges. Things like this randomly happens and when it's time to get your money, you will get nothing because your account is already frozen due to reasons beyond your control.

[_act_]

Wait, isn't Coinbase not providing services to people from Russia in the first place? I don't see Russia on their "available countries" page: https://www.coinbase.com/places

That is true, I couldn't see Russia as one of the countries Coinbase is supporting and no news that Coinbase will not longer provide service for people from Russia.

This is kind of confusing, but I know other countries that Coinbase do not support can still use Coinbase, not Coinbase pro but the countries can not just access the exchange on the wallet but can deposit and withdraw cryptocurrencies. I am thinking maybe these Russians do not have access to the wallet again at all or something, or what do you think?

[mindrust]

This info seems very fresh (at least, I didn't see it in the news when I googled it in English), and I'm not 100% sure if it will be confirmed later, but my source is the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak. In his official telegram channel, he wrote that Coinbase will follow something similar to what Binance did when they restricted Russian wallets with over $10 worth of cryptos. He says that in case of Coinbase, the limit will be restricted access to wallets of Russian citizens whose balances are above 10,000 EUR. He says that the ability to top up the account is already restricted, and that the blocking of accounts will occur on May 31. Actions are explained by the approved package of EU and Switzerland's sanctions from April 10.

What do you think of such actions? Is it the problem of centralization or the strength of consolidated institutional response to you?

That's theft.

If anybody thinks this is fine just because they only seized the Russian money, think again. This could happen to you too. See the Canadian truckers and how their government blocked their bank accounts just because they didn't want to take the poison jab.

Holding wealth in these centralized entities is a big mistake but we simply have no choice other than holding physical gold and bitcoin in a cold wallet.

[kryptqnick]

Re: Coinbase is likely to restrict rich Russian accounts

Wait, isn't Coinbase not providing services to people from Russia in the first place? I don't see Russia on their "available countries" page: https://www.coinbase.com/places

That's a very good point, actually. It seems they don't provide access to Russia as a country. However, there have been news that they blocked 25 thousand addresses related to Russia on March 8.
So I guess it means that there are at least some Russians using Coinbase anyway, and they will be affected by this restriction. I'm not sure if these are people residing in Russia and using VPNs or Russian citizens residing in other countries, though.

That's theft.

If anybody thinks this is fine just because they only seized the Russian money, think again. This could happen to you too. See the Canadian truckers and how their government blocked their bank accounts just because they didn't want to take the poison jab.

Holding wealth in these centralized entities is a big mistake but we simply have no choice other than holding physical gold and bitcoin in a cold wallet.

Do you think they'll seize the money? That's not how I understood the news. Given that there was a comparison with Binance, I figured it would be done similarly. On Binance, if I understand correctly, the exchange warned people that new restrictions will be imposed and allowed getting all the money out of the exchange (at least allowed a time window for that). I'd expect Coinbase to address it in a similar fashion, saying that the restrictions are being put in place and that they have time till a certain day to withdraw their money.
I should also add that these are not frivolous actions of exchanges, they are only following international sanctions.

[DaveF]

So a large regulated service is following the directions of the governments of the countries it operates in.
<shocking>
Seriously, if you are a Russian and kept your crypto on a regulated exchange for this long after the sanctions started. AND after Putin put in new money controls in Russia.
Well sorry to say you are an idiot.
Not your keys not your coins, but after all of this going on....yeah what did they think was going to happen?

-Dave

[24Kt]

So a large regulated service is following the directions of the governments of the countries it operates in.
<shocking>
Seriously, if you are a Russian and kept your crypto on a regulated exchange for this long after the sanctions started. AND after Putin put in new money controls in Russia.
Well sorry to say you are an idiot.
Not your keys not your coins, but after all of this going on....yeah what did they think was going to happen?

-Dave

Very true. This is only a matter of time when countries after countries are implementing on sanctions to Russia. And knowing Coinbase, definitely, it will follow what they are supposed to do, follow the government regulations where they are based at. So if you are a Russian, definitely, you should know that by now and before this implementation, you already know where to store your funds.

[logfiles]

something similar to what Binance did when they restricted Russian wallets with over $10 worth of cryptos.

Wait, I haven't been following the Binance developments for about a month or so. Are you trying to say any account from Russia with just 10 USD was restricted, or you made a typing error?

What do you think of such actions? Is it the problem of centralization or the strength of consolidated institutional response to you?

Obviously, when you had over your money to a centralized service. That's one of the things to always expect.

[Darker45]

While Coinbase hasn't yet issued an official statement on this, it is not unlikely that this will happen. Binance has already implemented this "following the EU's fifth package of restrictive measures against Russia."^[1] So if this restriction is indeed in line with the latest package of sanctions, it's probably just a matter of time before Coinbase will finally implement it.

This is obviously a direct effect of centralization. This is not a show of strength of united institutions. After all, these are not unilateral initiatives. Instead, these are steps in compliance with legal pressure. Lest we forget, both Binance and Coinbase did not heed Ukraine's earlier call to ban Russian accounts. These latest developments are clearly born out of government demands.

[1] https://www.binance.com/en/support/announcement/4887e569afdf4b1e89e024371d3a49b9

something similar to what Binance did when they restricted Russian wallets with over $10 worth of cryptos.

Wait, I haven't been following the Binance developments for about a month or so. Are you trying to say any account from Russia with just 10 USD was restricted, or you made a typing error?

I think the amount is not $10 but €10,000. This measure is apparently targeting rich Russian users and not ordinary Russians.

[dkbit98]

This is like saying that McDonalds shop located in US is banning entry to Russian citizens who live in Russia.
I doubt it's even possible for someone to register in Coinbase if he is citizen of that country, so this looks like juts one more marketing trick and ass kissing of regulators and government.
In the mean time US government continues to print more money, inflation is higher than ever, prices are going sky high, and they need something to divert attention of masses.

[Potato Chips]

and that the blocking of accounts will occur on May 31

One way or the other, it seems some accounts will be restricted/blocked on the same date. There have been reports that some people who coinbase suspects to be covered by the recent sanctions have received an ultimatum and they have before May 31 to decide as well.

I received this email today saying :

Based on your account records, we believe you are included in these sanctions. To comply, Coinbase will soon be restricting your ability to access your account...

Before May 31, 2022, you need to withdraw all funds from your account or provide us with specific documents to show you are not covered by these sanctions.

Note that you can be falsely flagged, majority of this reddit thread claimed to have nothing to do with russia...

machine translated:

Crypto exchange Coinbase sent out warnings to some users from Russia about blocking accounts from May 31 due to sanctions. To avoid this, it is necessary to provide documents confirming that the owner of the crypto wallet is not subject to EU sanctions. In a…

Per the local business news RBC, the trading platform has given time until May 31 for those users to withdraw their funds. Failing which, crypto assets may be frozen and funds transferred to this account in the future will also be blocked.

[LTU_btc]

It's not surprising and understandable move. Coinbase basically is crypto bank which follows all regulations. So, you have to expect that something similar will happen. IMO, it would be unfair if Russian will be able to bypass sanctions through services like Coinbase.
It happens when you keep Bitcoins in centralised crypto wallets. Not your keys, not your Bitcoins.

Wait, isn't Coinbase not providing services to people from Russia in the first place? I don't see Russia on their "available countries" page: https://www.coinbase.com/places

That is true, I couldn't see Russia as one of the countries Coinbase is supporting and no news that Coinbase will not longer provide service for people from Russia.

This is kind of confusing, but I know other countries that Coinbase do not support can still use Coinbase, not Coinbase pro but the countries can not just access the exchange on the wallet but can deposit and withdraw cryptocurrencies. I am thinking maybe these Russians do not have access to the wallet again at all or something, or what do you think?

Yeah, I think you're right. In this list there is countries where Coinbase allows users to buy, sell and convert crypto. From what I understand, Russian people are only allowed to use Coinbase as crypto wallet.