A crypto exchange's boss says all Russian transactions should not be banned March 3 2022.

A crypto exchange's boss says all Russian transactions should not be banned on March 3, 2022.

Binance founder Zhao Changpeng says the exchange will comply with curbs on individual users but rejects a blanket ban

The founder of one of the largest trading platforms said cryptocurrency exchanges should not block transactions by Russian users amid fears that digital currencies will be used to circumvent sanctions.

Changpeng Zhao, chief executive and founder of Binance, said that the company was not in a position to sanction groups of people.

Zhao told BBC Radio 4's Today program that there are a few hundred individuals on the international sanctions list in Russia, mostly politicians.

"We distinguish between Russian politicians who start wars and the average Russian, who is opposed to war."

Added, "We are not political, we are against war, but we are here to help the people."

Several cryptocurrency exchanges - which allow the trade of digital currencies including bitcoin and Ethereum - have been under pressure to comply with Western sanctions, which block transactions with Russia to prevent the Kremlin from bypassing restrictions aimed at cutting it off from international banking.

At the weekend, the UK, EU, US, and Canada took steps to expel Russian banks from Swift, the main global payment messaging system used by banks, and to prevent Russia's central bank from using its foreign exchange reserves.

In the future, crypto could be used as an alternative measure of international exchange to the dollar by the Russian government and its banks.

Shao, better known as "CZ", said he was not aware of how many accounts had been frozen due to the platform's links to Russia. However, he insisted Binance knew its customers and would not allow individuals sanctioned by the U.S. to use its service.

Ukrainian deputy prime minister has requested crypto exchanges block all Russian addresses, a request that has so far been resisted by the largest exchanges including Binance and Nasdaq-listed Coinbase.

"We do not debate the right level of sanctions. No sanctions lists are made," Zhao said.

The number of exchanges worldwide is in the tens of thousands. Many of them are very small, many of them are not very secure. There is a lack of compliance with many of them. The industry does not come under our control. You can publish your sanctions list, I can publish mine, and guess what? It won't be followed by anyone else. Users will simply move to smaller platforms."

Cryptocurrencies - which are decentralized ledgers - can't be used by people to avoid sanctions, Zhao said.

There are always multiple ways for people to evade sanctions. US dollars, cash, diamonds, and gold can all be used to avoid sanctions. I don't see anything special about crypto here."

Forbes magazine's billionaires' list estimates Zhao's personal wealth at $1.9 billion (£1 billion). He says his company has donated $10 million to aid the humanitarian effort in Ukraine and help those fleeing the conflict.