EU Adopts 21st Round of Sanctions Against Russia, Expanding Restrictions on Finance, Energy, and Crypto Assets

The Council of the European Union formally adopted the 21st sanctions package against Russia on July 23, focusing on strengthening restrictions on the Russian financial system, energy revenue, military industry, and crypto-asset services. In the financial sector, the EU imposed asset freezes on 94 banks and major financial institutions and expanded transaction bans on 33 Russian credit and financial institutions; meanwhile, 14 service platforms related to crypto-assets were included in the scope of restrictions, and for the first time, it was proposed that comprehensive bans could be implemented on crypto-asset services in third countries that assist Russia in evading sanctions.