The European Union has expanded measures against the Russian financial and banking sector as part of its twenty-first sanctions package against Russia, the EU Council said in a statement. "Today, the EU is significantly expanding action against Russia’s financial and banking sector as a vehicle of Russia’s war economy. It is extending its transaction ban to 33 additional Russian credit and financial institutions," the EU Council said. This measure is regarded as "a strong deterrent to countries hosting platforms that help Russia evade EU sanctions." "This new instrument will enable the EU to ban any transaction between an EU operator and any crypto provider used by Russia," the statement says.