European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde on Tuesday warned of the “threat” posed by cryptocurrencies obtained on the ruble exchange, in an attempt to circumvent sanctions imposed by Western countries on Russia.

Speaking at an innovation conference organized by the Bank for International Settlements, Lagarde said the amount of the ruble exchanged into cryptocurrencies is “at the highest level since May 2021.”

Lagarde considered crypto assets a threat and in the past posed a threat to serve shady and criminal transactions.

Now it is being used to avoid sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine, according to the head of the European Central Bank.

Lagarde also noted that Ukrainian refugees arrived in several countries with the hryvnia. [moeda ucraniana] Pockets that cannot be quickly exchanged for either the Euro or other European currencies because the Ukrainian currency does not have a reference exchange rate.

The European Union and the European Central Bank are trying to find a way for Ukrainians fleeing the conflict to exchange money in their possession by creating an exchange mechanism acceptable to banks and exchange offices.

The use of digital currencies was a way to circumvent the effects of the conflict. There is a fear that it will be used illegally, but also as a way to help the population million euros in donationsand as a way to send money to families.

In Portugal there are already many examples of this, where we had the opportunity to report.

Last week, the Kyiv government legalized all crypto assets and all companies providing cryptocurrency services, making Ukraine The second cryptostatic in the world, Then to El Salvador.