Binance exchange resumes operation in Russia discreetly, lifts restrictions on Russian users, BNB price impact

• Binance exchange quietly lifted all current restrictions related to sanctions against Russians on April 22.
• Users can use locally issued MasterCard and Visa cards to deposit money again after wartime prohibition last year.
• BNB is up almost 5% since the announcement, with a potential 10% uptick underway. 

Binance cryptocurrency exchange decided to lift sanctions imposed against Russian citizens and residents quietly on Saturday, April 22. The resolve comes after the European Union (EU) placed restrictions on Russia around March 2022 after they attacked Ukraine. In the aftermath, Binance declared it would cease support for deposits from Visa and MasterCard cards issued in Russia. They also stopped any deposits from those cards made from the country.

Binance exchange lifts sanctions against Russia

The sanctions have been lifted just over a year after, with Russian news website Forklog highlighting:

Users can deposit Russian rubles, euros British pounds, and other currencies from bank cards issued in Russia.

The news comes after an earlier report from the same news site that the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume lifted limits for accounts with balances exceeding 10,000 euros for users in the President Vladimir Putin-led country. Citing a Binance spokesperson in an email:

All current restrictions related to sanctions against Russian nationals are applied by the platform and its legal entities in the European Union in full.

Notably, however, Binance has not made an official release to confirm either of these changes.

Binance among exchanges that suspended Russian accounts

In 2022, Russian bank cards were banned after the EU and the United States imposed restrictions on the country for their actions against Ukraine. In the aftermath, most Russian banks were disconnected from SWIFT, the international interbank settlement network.

Further, in spring 2022, the EU expanded its sanctions to bar Russian users with account balances exceeding 10,000 euros from enjoying cryptocurrency services. When Binance declared this directive (the 10,000-euro limit) to users within Russia, the giant exchange noted “The EU’s fifth package of restrictive measures against Russia” demanded the limitations.

The threshold worsened in fall, rendering it impossible for Russians and the entire country’s populace to utilize any cryptocurrency services registered in the EU. Crypto firms were quick to implement the veto, with the likes of LocalBitcoins, Crypto.com, and Blockchain.com informing their Russian users that their accounts would soon be discontinued.

Based on media reports, while the EU restrictions still serve, the 10,000-euro limit sanction no longer applies to Binance. Similarly, the exchange has disregarded the Russian bank cards ban. This plays into the exchange’s stance as announced by Binance CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), in an October statement during the Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal. He said that while the flagship exchange respects the sanctions, some Russians could still enjoy services from some of its legal entities outside the EU borders.

We are against dictatorships of war. We are not against the population.

Binance prohibits P2P trades in dollars and euros

In March 2023, Binance embargoed all peer-to-peer (P2P) traders in dollars ($) and euros (€) for Russian citizens and residents. Now the only available option is the Russian ruble, with a Binance spokesperson confirming that this limitation still holds.

Binance coin price reacted with a 5% uptick since the announcement, 10% incoming?

Binance coin price (BNB) has reacted to the news with a 5% uptick since April 22 and is trading at $331.3 at the time of writing. An increase in buyer momentum from the current level could pump BNB almost 10% to $357.0.

In a highly bullish case, Binance coin could reach higher, tagging the $451.2 hurdle, denoting a 35% upswing from current rates. This is likely considering BNB had strong support presented by the 50-, 100-, and 200-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMA) at $319.1, $310.7, and $304.8 respectively. Notably, these were potential entry points for sidelined investors to solidify the uptrend.

BNB/USDT 3-day chart

Conversely, if profit taking kicks off, Binance coin price could descend below the three EMAs to tag the $277.6 support level, or in the dire case, tag the $240.3 swing low.