Russians shower love on Bitcoin as war rages in Ukraine; but will cryptocurrency help?
Cryptocurrency purchases in rubles are at a record high following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, raising questions about whether piling into the likes of Bitcoin can help Moscow get around sanctions.
The United States and Western allies have sought to cripple Russia's banking sector and currency with a barrage of sanctions.
They include cutting selected Russian banks from the SWIFT messaging system, rendering them isolated from the rest of the world.
SWIFT's system allows banks to communicate rapidly and securely about transactions -- cutting Russia off is aimed at preventing it trading with most of the world.
Western measures that prohibit transactions with Russia's central bank have also helped plunge the country's economy into turmoil.
The ruble is down 27 percent against the dollar since the start of the year and is trading at more than 100 rubles per US unit, its weakest level on record.
Russians are consequently flocking to cryptocurrencies that operate on a decentralised network and therefore are not directly affected by sanctions.
Crypto data-provider Kaiko has reported record-high purchasing volumes of bitcoin in rubles since last week's invasion.
Another type of digital currency to have benefitted hugely from Russia's assault on its neighbour is tether, a "stablecoin" that is seen as less volatile than cryptocurrencies since it is pegged to the dollar.
"What we saw... looking at tether (is) the average trade size has increased" in Russia, Clara Medalie, head of research at Kaiko, told AFP.
"However it's still relatively low, which shows an interest split between institutional and retail buyers."
Governments can, if they wish, order shopping platforms to place restrictions on purchases made using cryptocurrencies as a way
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