Sources within Copper Technologies suggested that this sale was prompted by complications that arose after Mikhail Klyukin, the banker who owns over 2% of the custodial service, was added to the US sanctions list in March 2022.
Copper Technologies declined to make any public statements regarding the removal of the Russian banker from its shareholder register, but assured that the firm always adhered to sanction laws based on legal advice.
Legal experts at the publication highlighted that even though the US does not have jurisdiction over other countries’ business practices, Copper Technologies could potentially be subject to “secondary sanctions” for its transactions involving the Russian shareholder.
On the previous day, the Council of the European Union approved its twelfth set of economic and individual restrictive measures, which restricts the rights of Russians to own and manage cryptocurrency companies.