​Bybit refuses to impose sanctions against Russian users

What’s new? Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit will not impose restrictions on users from Russia at the call of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). GetBlock Magazine was told this by its own source, citing a message to the platform’s partners.

What is known about the sanctions? On October 31, Singapore’s regulator said that licensed crypto exchanges must comply with sanctions against Russia. MAS noted that pro-Russian groups were using the platforms to raise money in cryptocurrency. The exact amount is unknown, but in question are “millions of dollars” collected in recent months.

Back in March, the regulator imposed restrictions on certain Russian banks, legal entities, and types of activities, and banned the promotion of fundraising in favor of the government of the Russian Federation. Both financial institutions and digital asset service providers must comply with these measures.

Representatives of Bybit responded to numerous questions about sanctions compliance by saying that they would not “discriminate against users based on their location and passport.” Restrictions may affect only those cases where the jurisdiction of the country does not allow futures trading without licenses (US, Singapore, China, etc.). In addition, the platform’s representatives stressed that Bybit is headquartered and registered in Dubai.

What is known about Bybit? The crypto exchange was founded in March 2018. There are 195 currency pairs available on the platform, the daily trading volume as of November 4 is $901 million, according to CoinMarketCap, and the number of users exceeds 1,6 million.

In late October, representatives of the crypto exchange Binance complained about the lack of clear recommendations from the EU to comply with sanctions against Russia. Later, the head of the exchange Changpeng Zhao said that he did not have a definitive answer on the issue. He explained that the company does “not against any people,” but must follow the rules of the countries in which it is licensed.