Bybit, Bitstamp and several other exchanges began providing client data to Russian banks

A number of foreign crypto exchanges are already cooperating with Russian arbitration managers in locating debtors’ digital assets. This was disclosed by Evgeny Akimov, head of the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Department at Sberbank, as reported by «Vedomosti».

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In particular, the cooperation has been established with the Dubai-based Bybit, the European Bitstamp, the Singapore-based Bitrue, the American Gate.io, and OKX, registered on the Seychelles. The platforms inform the managers about their clients’ crypto wallets and their addresses.

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Akimov noted that some of them provide information on request in free form, others request official requests, including from law enforcement agencies, a third group — only when there is a court decision translated into English, others — request additional information.

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«Official requests from a state agency can be obtained from the bailiffs», — Akimov is quoted by «Interfax».

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Courts may compel a debtor to provide the manager with the login and password to access the cryptocurrency wallet, but sometimes the person provides incorrect data. To avoid such a situation, the court may order the bankrupt to access the wallet in the presence of a notary, said arbitration manager Ilya Ulyanov.

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One of the problems in the collection process is the withdrawal of identified digital assets. However, for some exchanges, such as Coinbase, there is a proprietary procedure in place.

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«The arbitration manager confirms his powers by a court order; assets are frozen, the manager opens his wallet and transfers the debtor’s funds there, converts them and then transfers to the main account [for settlements with creditors],» — Ul’yanov described.

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At Akimov’s suggestion, arbitration managers should be allowed to independently sell cryptocurrencies on exchanges with fiat withdrawals, in line with the overseas disposal of assets. Nevertheless, the legality question of withdrawing such assets directly to accounts in Russia remains open.

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Earlier, ForkLog reported that Russian banks began testing tracking of bitcoin transactions.

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For the legality of tracing debtors’ bitcoin wallets, read ForkLog’s special feature.