Cryptocurrencies have once again proved to be a haven for investors from political and economic issues within their country, with Russians being the latest beneficiaries.
Over the weekend, a private army of soldiers called the Wagner Group created an unpleasant scene in the country, causing residents to convert their Russian rubles to cryptocurrencies such as the dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT.
What Caused the Wagner Mutiny?
The Wagner Group is a team of soldiers led by the wealthy Russian warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin. Working as mercenaries, the Russian government hired the team to aid the war against Ukraine. The warlord recruited Russian prisoners to join the group in exchange for their freedom.
In recent reports, Prigozhin alleged that the Russian military, under the directives of Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, ordered an air strike, killing thousands of his men. It caused him to take the offensive by instigating a short-lived mutiny in Russia.
On June 23rd, the mercenary chief mobilized his troop of soldiers to leave their post in Ukraine and engage in a “march for justice” to Russia’s capital, Moscow. Prigozhin cited that he had no intention of implementing a military coup.
The following day, his mercenary team made their way into the southern Russian city of Rostov. While doing all this, Prigozhin passed his voice and video messages via social media platforms like Telegram.
The mercenary boss ordered his soldiers to stop their march only after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who has a close tie with Prigozhin, stepped into the case. He struck an undetailed broker deal with the Russian mercenary chief.
The details of the deal remain undisclosed, as neither Prigozhin nor Russian President Vladimir Putin commented on it. Still, it is believed that this rebellious act by the mercenary chief may cause Russia a long-term problem.
Russia’s Ruble Against the U.S. Dollar
Amid the political tussle over the weekend, the Russian ruble tumbled by as much as 3% against the U.S. dollar. According to metrics from the data analytics platform CCData, the dollar value of transactions between the Russian fiat and USDT increased to $14.8 million on June 24th alone.
After the Wagner Group’s short-lived mutiny, the rate of trade from rubles to the U.S. dollar was reduced to around $3 million.
