KuCoin Halts Services for Users in Russia and Belarus Amid EU Sanctions

KuCoin has announced the immediate termination of its services for users in Russia and Belarus, becoming the third major cryptocurrency exchange to impose restrictions in the region within a short span. The exchange cited compliance with applicable legal and regulatory requirements for this decision, which affects all products and services available on its platform.

Affected customers will receive individual notifications detailing deadlines and procedures for closing open positions and withdrawing their assets. Users who have not yet received a notification are not required to take any action at this time.

This move follows the European Union's adoption of its 21st sanctions package against Russia, which includes bans on transactions with various foreign crypto platforms. KuCoin's decision aligns with a broader trend, as other exchanges like Bitget and MEXC have also restricted services in Russia and Belarus recently.

While KuCoin has not disclosed specific user numbers by country, estimates suggest that Russia accounted for approximately 3.93% of its global website traffic in September, translating to an estimated 1.77 million Russian registrations. However, the actual number of affected users could vary significantly.