Russia and its citizens continue to face sanctions left, right, and center.
Dapper Labs, a blockchain and software development company developing blockchain-based products and services, has restricted Russians from using their payment services.
Dapper Labs is home to such projects as CryptoKitties, NBA Top Shot, NFL All Day, UFC Strike, and the Flow blockchain.
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According to the announcement shared by Dapper, the accounts that have connections to Russia are prohibited to purchase, sell or gift any Moment across Dapper Sports. Moreover, the accounts cannot make any withdrawals or “Dapper Balance Purchases.”
The company highlighted that the restriction comes after the European Union imposed new sanctions against Russia and its nationals.
On October 6th, the EU banned all cross-border crypto payments between the political and economic union and Russia. The press release shared by the EU stated that it prohibits “all crypto-asset wallets, accounts, or custody services, irrespective of the amount of the wallet.”
The developers behind Flow blockchain noted that its “payment processing and stored value service partner is subject to EU regulations.” Therefore, the company has been directed to take action.
Following the description of the restrictions, Dapper Labs noted:
However, Dapper has not closed the accounts. Users impacted by these actions can continue to access and view their NFTs. Additionally, regardless of this new regulation, any NFT previously purchased by an impacted user continues to belong to that user.
It is worth noting that at the beginning of October, crypto exchange OKX halted providing its services in Russia. However, the company didn’t disclose the reason for such a move.
The EU sanctions and Dapper Labs restrictions came shortly after Russia announced its plans to use its CBDC for international trading settlements. According to Reuters, after launching its central bank digital currency (CBDC), also known as the digital ruble, the country will aim to use it for “mutual settlements with China.”
