Belarus is turning to cryptocurrency and tokenisation to keep its economy afloat under mounting Western sanctions. President Alexander Lukashenko has ordered the country’s banks to expand digital asset services, framing the move as a practical response to restrictions on traditional finance.
“Today, cryptocurrency-based transactions are more active than ever, and their role in facilitating payments is growing,” Lukashenko told top officials and banking executives in Minsk this week. He revealed that cross-border payments through exchanges hit $1.7 billion in the first seven months of 2025, with volumes projected to reach $3 billion by year’s end.
The president also endorsed tokenization for the financial sector, arguing that it could reduce intermediaries, automate deals via smart contracts, and give users greater control over assets. “Digitalization here is not for the sake of digitalization, but for real economic effect,” he said.
Belarus’ pivot mirrors developments in other Moscow-aligned states. In Kyrgyzstan, crypto payments surged to $4.2 billion by mid-2024, much of it linked to Russian users exploiting local platforms to sidestep sanctions. Investigations have tied some activity to entities connected with the shuttered Russian exchange Garantex, raising concerns that Kyrgyz firms operate as shell companies.
The European Union has kept Belarus under sweeping restrictions since the contested 2020 elections, citing political repression and Minsk’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine. Current measures target 310 individuals and 46 entities through travel bans, asset freezes, and funding restrictions, and have been extended until February 2026.
Pishing banks deeper into crypto, Lukashenko is betting on digital assets as a financial lifeline—but critics warn it could further entrench Belarus within Russia’s sanction-evading networks.
