Russians Appeared to Seek Refuge in Crypto During Wagner Revolt
- Ruble-denominated Tether trading volume rises, CCData shows
- The Wagner group initiated a short-lived revolt in Russia
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Russians appeared to have sought to exchange rubles for the crypto stablecoin Tether as a refuge during the short-lived mercenary rebellion that shook the nation over the weekend.
While the overall flows appear to be relatively small, Ruble-denominated Tether stablecoin trading volume more than tripled to around $15 million on June 24 across digital-asset exchanges still supporting trading of the Russian currency, according to blockchain data firm CCData. The largest platforms for ruble transactions as of this month were Binance, Cryptonex, HitBTC, and Coinsbit, CCData said. The US and its allies enacted financial sanctions last year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.