Russian official Andrey Svintsov has advised citizens to stop buying Gram cryptocurrency and halt all Telegram financial transactions until security agencies issue official guidance.
Key Takeaways
Russia charged Telegram creator Pavel Durov with aiding terrorism via the 13M-user Dayvinchik bot.Gram token fell to $1.38 on July 29 before rebounding to $1.42, remaining down 14% year-to-date.Russian officials demand Telegram open a local office, host user data, and cooperate with the FSB.Andrey Svintsov, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, recommended that Russians stop purchasing Gram cryptocurrency. Svintsov suggested waiting for official comments from Roskomnadzor and the Federal Security Service (FSB) before conducting “financial transactions via Telegram channels.”
He reiterated demands that Russian authorities have made of Pavel Durov: Telegram must open an office in Russia, store user data within the country, and “cooperate with the intelligence services.”
Svintsov’s comments followed an announcement that Durov has been charged in Russia with aiding terrorist activity. A statement from the FSB claimed Telegram failed to remove “numerous channels, chats, and bots” that are “actively used by Ukrainian special services, terrorist, and extremist organizations to prepare and coordinate acts of sabotage and terrorism, mass murder, and cyber-fraud in the Russian Federation.” The agency added that these activities have resulted in “numerous human casualties, including women and children, as well as multi-billion dollar material damage.”
