INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Rouble-denominated trades with the Tether - a so-called stablecoin - hit $29.4 million.London: Trading volumes between the Russian rouble
and the Tether cryptocurrency spiked sharply on Monday as the local currency tumbled to a record low on Western sanctions, data shared with
Reuters showed.Rouble-denominated trades with the Tether - a so-called stablecoin - hit $29.4 million, their highest this year and around
three times more than a week earlier, according to Arcane Research, an Oslo-based digital asset researcher.Stablecoins are a type of
cryptocurrency designed to avoid the wild fluctuations that plague bitcoin
In theory, their steady value allows users to protect funds or savings in times of economic stress.The figures suggest surging interest in
crypto among Russians after Western sanctions imposed on Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine took a toll on the local currency.The Russian
rouble tumbled to a record low in volatile trade on Monday, losing a third of its value so far this year, after the West ramped up sanctions
including blocking banks from the SWIFT global payments system.Trading between the rouble and bitcoin (BTC), whose 13-year history has been
peppered with wild price swings - was more muted, the data showed.Rouble-bitcoin trading on Thursday topped $16 million, its highest this
year, as Russia launched its invasion
On Monday it totalled about $8.5 million."People with the rouble are trying to get out of it due to the drastic devaluation after all the
sanctions," said Arcane's Bendik Norheim Schei."Under the current market conditions, I'm not surprised to see investors, at least those in
Russia, seeking stablecoins and not taking on the market risk of BTC
This is about saving their funds, not investing."
