Cryptocurrencies: A Distinct Nature Unveiled Post Russia-Ukraine War?

• Cryptocurrencies are in the limelight following the Russia-Ukraine war. They have highly facilitated the citizen witnessing financial scrutiny. 

• The use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has increased as the citizens seek to store their value amidst this geopolitical crisis. And BTC trading volume peaked instantly after the war.

• Cryptocurrencies are playing a significant role, but the actions of several crypto entities have been mixed. It is to see what crypto assets further unveil amidst the geopolitical crises. 

The Russia-Ukraine war has sparked massive changes all over the world. Whether, it’s about the prices of commodities globally or the impact on the traditional finance market or the crypto industry. 

For instance, the S&P 500 and save haven fiat currencies witnessed a drop, and the overall cryptocurrency market plunged, but the crowned cryptocurrency Bitcoin held a somewhat consolidated position.

Bitcoin has outdone even the fiat currencies like the Japanese Yen and Swiss franc. It seems like Cryptocurrencies have disclosed their true nature during these geopolitical crises. It has somewhat proved that it is not just another traditional asset. 

For instance, Bitcoin trading volume peaked almost instantly after Russia invaded Ukraine in Russian Ruble and Ukraine’s hryvnia. 

As the access to traditional finance systems became a bit impossible for the citizens, it resulted in people turning their heads towards the leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC) and others as well. 

Whereas, Ukraine being the besieged one here, has received massive donations via the asset class, which has helped it acquire military supplies to facilitate the armed forces. Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has constantly been taking to his Twitter in an attempt to urge several crypto entities to support Ukraine to the best they can. 

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The Ukrainian government has been accepting Donations in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Tether (USDT), etc., and has raised over $63 million so far. 

But apart from supporting the citizens, Cryptocurrencies also have raised several concerns in the minds of the authorities. The regulators have been calling on the crypto exchanges to comply with the sanctions imposed on the Russian officials, as they were concerned that they might use crypto assets to evade these sanctions. 

Furthermore, Crypto exchange FTX, staking platform Everstake, and Kuna exchange of Ukraine also collaborated recently with the Ukrainian government to launch a website dedicated to crypto donations, which aims to facilitate all the people willing to send donations in support of Ukraine. 

Slime exchanges like UpBit, GoPax, Coinbase, etc., made similar efforts to block Russian addresses.  

Contrasting to the efforts of these exchanges, Binance and Kraken decided not to restrict Russian-based users from their services. Kraken’s CEO underlined through his Twitter account that they could not freeze the accounts of their Russian clients without a legal requirement to do so. 

Recently Meltem Demirors, the CoinShares CSO, highlighted her views about the future of Bitcoin in an interview where she said that the current geopolitical tensions might help Bitcoin to drift away from the risk-on asset. She further opined that the geopolitical crisis might facilitate BTC to emerge as a valuable asset. 

Several crypto entities have mixed actions following the Russia Ukraine war. But then, cryptocurrencies were designed to facilitate people and stay truly decentralized and prove correct as it has helped the citizens and forces profoundly. It is to look forward to how the cryptocurrencies would further emerge globally. 

Steve Anderson is an Australian crypto enthusiast. He is a specialist in management and trading for over 5 years. Steve has worked as a crypto trader, he loves learning about decentralisation, understanding the true potential of the blockchain.

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