All 27 EU member states must agree, but three countries are reportedly already opposing the crypto-specific elements.
The European Union is reportedly preparing its most aggressive move yet against Russian crypto activity. A draft proposal highlighted in today’s crypto news bit calls for a full ban on all Russian crypto service providers.
This is a huge shift. Earlier sanctions targeted specific platforms. Those did not work. So now, the EU wants to ban everything at once.
For years, the EU has sanctioned individual Russian crypto platforms one by one. Each time a platform got sanctioned, a new one appeared. The pattern repeated itself. Garantex, a big Russian exchange, got sanctioned. Grinex, a rebranded version, replaced it. A7A5, a ruble-backed stablecoin, was later launched.
The proposed 20th sanctions package changes the approach entirely, making it one of the biggest crypto news pieces at press time. Instead of targeting individual platforms, EU entities would reportedly be barred from using any crypto service provider based in Russia.
The proposal also explicitly targets Russia’s digital rouble (also called the ruble), the country’s government-backed digital currency.
This is the first time the EU has proposed a sector-wide crypto prohibition tied to Russia. The package also adds 20 more Russian banks to the sanctions list. It also introduces new tools to restrict trade with countries, allegedly helping Russia avoid existing sanctions.
The reason for this shift becomes clear when you look at one stablecoin. A7A5 launched in early 2025. It is a ruble-pegged stablecoin. One token equals one Russian ruble. It runs primarily on Tron and Ethereum.
As per crypto news, it processed over $100 billion in transactions within months. That is faster than almost any stablecoin in history. Its main use was simple. Russian businesses and individuals converted rubles into A7A5. Then they swapped A7A5 for USDT. That gave them access to dollar-equivalent funds without touching any Western bank.
The US sanctioned A7A5 in August 2025. The EU followed in October 2025. Neither stopped the volume. According to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, the stablecoin crossed $100 billion in cumulative transfers by January 2026 despite those restrictions.
A7A5 is allegedly 51% owned by Ilan Shor, a Moldovan oligarch sanctioned for election interference on Russia’s behalf. The remaining 49% is reportedly held by Promsvyazbank, a Russian state bank already under multiple international sanctions.
The stablecoin is officially issued by a Kyrgyzstan-registered company, which reportedly helped it avoid direct restrictions for months.
The EU proposal faces one very large obstacle. All 27 member states must agree. Every single one. If even one country says no, the proposal fails.
At least three countries are reportedly already pushing back on the crypto-specific elements of the package. Their exact identities have not been made public. But their opposition creates real uncertainty about whether the most aggressive EU digital asset move ever proposed will actually pass.
Community reactions have been skeptical. Some observers noted that banning centralized Russian platforms does not stop peer-to-peer transfers or decentralized exchanges. Others pointed out that activity will simply move to harder-to-track channels if the ban passes.
Today’s crypto news piece suggests that the proposal remains in the draft stage as of Feb. 11. No final vote has taken place. If passed, enforcement would fall to individual member states, each with different levels of crypto regulation capacity.
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