KuCoin to Suspend Services in Russia and Belarus, Citing Compliance
Key Takeaways
- •KuCoin has suspended access to all of its products and services for users in Russia and Belarus, effective immediately, citing legal and regulatory compliance requirements.
- •Affected users will be offered an orderly exit process that allows them to withdraw their assets.
- •KuCoin pleaded guilty in the United States in January 2025 to violating the Bank Secrecy Act, agreeing to pay roughly $297 million in forfeiture and fines and to exit the US market.
- •KuCoin's decision follows a broader industry trend, including Binance's 2023 sale of its Russian business to CommEX, amid international sanctions over the war in Ukraine.
- •The Bank of Russia approved NAUFOR as a self-regulatory organization for crypto exchanges and custodians, whose registry lists 23 crypto exchanges and eight digital custody institutions that must join an SRO within 90 days.
Cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin announced on Thursday that it has suspended access to all of its products and services for users based in Russia and Belarus, citing legal and regulatory compliance requirements.
In a notice published on its website, the exchange said the cutoff took immediate effect for users in the two countries, both of which are currently the targets of international sanctions. Affected users will be offered an “orderly exit process” that allows them to withdraw their assets.
“Compliance is at the core of our operations and guides our decisions on where and how we offer our services,” the exchange said in a Thursday X post addressing the service suspension.
KuCoin, founded in 2017, ranks among the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges by trading volume and is headquartered in the Seychelles. Compliance has carried particular weight for the company since January 2025, when it pleaded guilty in the United States to violating the Bank Secrecy Act and agreed to pay roughly $297 million in forfeiture and fines while committing to exit the US market. Its latest decision aligns it with a broader compliance trend across the crypto industry.
International sanctions led by the United States and Europe against Russia and Belarus over the war in Ukraine, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, have cut many Russian banks and companies off from Western financial markets. A growing number of virtual asset service providers have since moved to restrict services for users in the region. Binance, for example, announced in 2023 that it would sell its Russian business to local buyer CommEX and wind down its operations in the country.
Bank of Russia Recognizes NAUFOR
Separately, also on Thursday, Russia’s central bank approved the National Association of Securities Market Participants, commonly known as NAUFOR, as a self-regulatory organization for crypto exchanges and custodians. Established in 1996, NAUFOR has long overseen self-regulation in the Russian securities market.
The central bank’s registry currently includes 23 crypto exchanges and eight digital custody institutions, and registered entities are required to join a self-regulatory organization within 90 days. The recognition builds on legislation adopted in 2024 that legalized crypto mining and allowed digital assets to be used in cross-border settlements under an experimental legal regime. How registered exchanges and custodians join under NAUFOR within that 90-day window will show how Russia’s framework for overseeing the sector takes shape in practice.
Related: UK sanctions three crypto exchanges tied to Russian illicit funds
