Binance adds support for Russian rubles for direct fiat-to-crypto trading

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has added support for Russian rubles (RUB) for its direct fiat-to-crypto trading facility.

The move allows Binance users to deposit and withdraw rubles, as well as to buy bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH) and XRP cryptocurrencies with the fiat currency, according to an announcement Wednesday.

The rubles support is being offered via Gibraltar-based electronic payments platform AdvCash. AdvCash charges 3% for each deposit, and 2.5% plus 50 RUB for each withdrawal, per the announcement. AdvCash claims to offer “faster” and “cheaper” payments than conventional money transfers and a regular bank account, according to its website. 

The plan to support rubles was first revealed by Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao on Oct. 21. Rubles is the second fiat currency Binance has supported, after adding Nigerian naira (NGN) last week. The NGN deposit feature is being offered via U.S.-based payments tech firm Flutterwave.

In a Twitter ask-me-anything (AMA) session on Wednesday, CZ  said that adding fiat on-ramps around the world is “very important for lowering the barrier to entry” and that users can expect “more pairs very soon.”