Russian Firms Turn to Crypto for China Commodities Trade (1)

Russian commodities firms struggling to execute financial transactions with Chinese counterparts have started tapping a new method for settling deals — stablecoins.

At least two top metals producers, both of which are unsanctioned, have begun to use Tether Holdings Ltd.’s stablecoin and some other cryptocurrencies to settle some of their cross-border transactions with mostly Chinese clients and suppliers, top executives at the companies said, declining to be identified as the information isn’t public. In some cases, the settlements go through Hong Kong.

That large Russian firms are now turning to blockchain two years after the start of the February 2022 ...