In recent years, the popularity of stablecoins in cryptocurrency payments has continued to rise, with many global companies adopting new payment methods.
Despite this trend, crypto payments remain prohibited for retail users in several countries, including China, Indonesia, Russia, and Turkey.
However, some legal experts and crypto regulatory observers have indicated that while domestic crypto payments are banned in these jurisdictions, using cryptocurrencies for payment services abroad may be legally permissible.
"Generally, the laws of a country only apply to events occurring within that country or to its citizens," said Meric Paldimoglu, managing partner of Paldimoglu Law Firm in Turkey.
In early June 2025, Georgian travel company Tripzy began accepting Tether (USDT) stablecoin payments through the CityPay infrastructure, allowing international customers to book services using the stablecoin.
"We started accepting cryptocurrencies to provide our customers with more freedom and convenience in payments," a Tripzy spokesperson told Cointelegraph. "This is particularly meaningful for guests from countries with currency restrictions or those who value transaction speed," the spokesperson added.
Given Georgia's heavy reliance on tourists from countries like Russia and Turkey—where there are strict limitations on residents' crypto payments—this new feature has sparked discussions about the legality of cross-border payments for travelers from these jurisdictions.
However, there is currently no explicit law prohibiting the use of cryptocurrencies for payments abroad.
"The Russian Federal Law No. 259—On Digital Financial Assets has never prohibited the use of cryptocurrencies for payments outside of Russia," Yuriy Brisov, founder of D&A CryptoMap, told Cointelegraph. He noted that current Russian law only prohibits residents from accepting cryptocurrencies for contractual purposes.
Paldimoglu expressed a similar view regarding Turkish law.
"When a Turkish citizen shops with a foreign company, Turkish law does not apply," the lawyer stated. He pointed out that the regulation prohibiting the use of crypto assets in payments only applies to licensed payment and electronic money institutions operating within Turkey.
"Therefore, it is legal for Turkish citizens to shop on foreign websites, and I believe this will not cause any issues between Georgia and Turkey," he added.
Brisov stated that while there has not been a new explicit conflict between jurisdictions that allow cryptocurrency payments and those that do not, such regulatory overlaps are more likely to attract the attention of global regulators.
"If a Georgian company like Tripzy starts accepting cryptocurrency payments from Russian tourists, this could be seen as a loophole in Brussels," he added. "If Tripzy only sells travel products to Georgia or other countries that have not implemented or supported sanctions against Russia, that would be fully compliant. However, if Georgia becomes a gateway for Russian funds to the world, it will face international pressure and be forced to take sides."
However, Brisov noted that a single travel agency may not trigger any sanctions from European regulators. But if a certain pattern emerges, the response could escalate—not from Russia, but from the global system responsible for compliance enforcement, he speculated.
Brisov's views align with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)'s recent warnings about the growing role of stablecoins in facilitating illegal transactions.
"Since 2024, there has been an increase in the use of stablecoins by criminals, including those linked to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and terrorist financiers, with most on-chain illegal activities now involving stablecoins," the FATF stated in its latest report on the implementation of anti-money laundering (AML) measures for cryptocurrencies.
The agency also released a detailed report on various AML measures taken by FATF member countries and other jurisdictions, promising to issue a special report on stablecoins in the first quarter of 2026.
Related: JPMorgan gives Circle a "reduce" rating, target price of $80 by the end of 2026
Original article: “Despite Domestic Bans in Multiple Countries, Overseas Crypto Payments May Still Be Legal”
免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。
