Bitcoin trading volume in Ukraine rises 200% as Russian war sparks currency fears

Bitcoin (BTCAltcoin trading volumes on a major cryptocurrency exchange in Ukraine soared in the wake of the Russian invasion, data shows.

According to monitoring sources Queen GekkoOn Feb. 24, Kona’s trading volume nearly tripled to over $4 million.

Encryption on the radar of Ukrainians

With the onset of the armed conflict with Russia, the effect on the paper currencies of both countries was immediately evident.

While the Russian ruble suffered significantly moreThe Ukrainian hryvnia also fell, targeting 30 against the dollar in what would be a new all-time low.

Ukraine, which only this month finally A law legalizing cryptocurrency after a lot of ups and downs among lawmakers, unsurprisingly, interest in alternatives is rising.

The effect was evident in seven-year-old Kona, where volumes were under $1 million on February 21 but three days later nearly $4.1 million.

According to CoinGecko data, enthusiasm has already begun to subside after the initial rally, coinciding with the stabilization of fiat currencies against the US dollar and other major currencies.

was less clear Kona special ratesThis shows a strange spread on both sides of the bitcoin spot price. At the time of writing, BTC/USD is trading at $38,300 on Bitstamp, while the USD/Kuna pair is over $40,000.

Stablecoin Tether (USDT), on the other hand, at $37,800 per bitcoin.

The central bank tightens currency freedoms

Meanwhile, a separate argument for getting into Bitcoin came from government currency controls this week.

Related: Russian miners continue to operate, may see Bitcoin pivot in response to sanctions

On Wednesday, the National Bank of Ukraine began restricting cash, limiting hryvnia withdrawals to 100,000 hryvnia (US$3,353) per day, and completely banning cross-border purchases and withdrawals of foreign currency.

a Facebook share He emphasized that the bank also sought to establish a stable exchange rate for the hryvnia.

Meanwhile, the Russian Central Bank began intervening in the foreign exchange markets to support the falling ruble on Thursday, with several moves apparently taking place in the past 24 hours.