MEXC has begun winding down services for users in Russia and Belarus, according to a service update posted on Oct. 20. The exchange cited “global compliance” as the reason but did not name a specific regulator, deadline, or number of affected accounts.
The notice stated that affected users “will receive individual notifications outlining the applicable timelines and procedures for closing positions and withdrawing assets.” It added that users who receive no message can continue trading as normal. MEXC said user assets remain “safe and secure” and pointed customers to its proof of trust page, a public attestation that customer balances are backed one-to-one.
The move is not MEXC’s only recent retreat. The same announcement center lists a separate notice stating that MEXC is winding down services for users in the Netherlands. Two exits in quick succession, both inside or adjacent to the European Union’s orbit, point to the same pressure.
Why now?
The timing follows a series of European regulatory steps. On April 23, the EU adopted its 20th sanctions package, which imposes a blanket prohibition on crypto transactions with any crypto asset service provider in Russia, plus an equivalent ban on Belarus-based providers. That ban took effect on May 24 and also blacklisted the RUBx stablecoin and the digital ruble.
Analysts at Elliptic described that package as targeting the architecture of evasion rather than single platforms. Brussels then adopted a 21st package on July 23, adding transaction bans on 14 crypto-asset service providers and extending the ban on Russian nationals sitting on the boards of any crypto-asset business from Aug. 25. It also created a tool that lets the EU prohibit dealings with providers in third countries that help Moscow dodge restrictions.
For a global exchange with European ambitions, that last clause is a pressure point. Serving Russian residents no longer just risks a fine in one jurisdiction; it risks being named as the kind of offshore platform the EU can cut off entirely.
Pressure from Moscow’s side
Russian users are being boxed in from home as well. The Bank of Russia will allow direct peer-to-peer (P2P) trades between residents only until July 1, 2027, while steering activity toward licensed domestic brokers and restricting transfers to self-custody wallets. In other words, domestic rules are herding Russians toward regulated local venues just as offshore venues like MEXC are pulling up the drawbridge.
Belarus users face a similar pinch. The EU’s Belarus framework mirrors the Russia ban, so an exchange that keeps serving Minsk carries the same headline risk as one that keeps serving Moscow.
