The United States Treasury has announced representatives of the multilateral Russian Elites, Proxies, and Oligarchs, or REPO, Task Force has targeted crypto in an attempt by Russian entities to evade sanctions.
In an announcement on March 9, the US Treasury Department said the task force has blocked or frozen more than $58 billion in assets subject to sanctions since the Russian military invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Members of the REPO team have been working to “counter Russia’s sanctions evasion”, which including illegal crypto transactions.
“As Russia’s war of aggression continues, REPO members remain determined in their commitment to impose steep costs on Russia,” said the task force. “REPO will continue to identify, locate, and freeze approved Russian assets, with the goal of depleting the Kremlin’s necessary funds for its illegal war.”
Since the conflict in Ukraine began in February 2022, the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control as well as its partners in the European Union have imposed strict sanctions on entities linked to Russia in an effort to slow down the war machine. However, according to a Chainalysis report on the one-year anniversary of the war, pro-Kremlin groups and propaganda outlets were able to use crypto transactions to raise approximately $5 million for their cause.
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The REPO added that assets linked to Russia under its member jurisdiction would remain “immobilized” until the end of the conflict. At the time of publication, there were no signs of the war abating with much of Ukraine under Russian occupation and many Ukrainian cities at risk of attack.