European Union establishes cryptocurrency working group: operating for 12 months to combat Russia's evasion of sanctions

The European Commission decided to establish a dedicated sanctions office during the tenth high-level sanctions measures meeting of the European Union, and to form a cryptocurrency working group within the office, responsible for addressing Russia's use of digital assets to evade sanctions. The working group is expected to operate for 12 months, with support from Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

The sanctions office will coordinate member states' implementation of sanctions measures, covering policy design, implementation, enforcement support, and anti-avoidance work. The working group will focus on relevant networks, including the A7A5 digital ruble stablecoin; this stablecoin previously had a trading volume exceeding 100 billion dollars.