Twitch stops payout to all Russian streamers due to economic sanctions

Twitch has stopped all payouts from the platform to Russian streamers, joining the growing list of companies cutting financial ties to Russia as the United States and European Union continue to institute economic sanctions against the country.

A number of Russian banks have been banned from the SWIFT international payment system as a result of sanctions, and common payment providers Visa and Mastercard recently stopped all services in Russia after the country invaded Ukraine. According to The Washington Post, Russian streamers were notified that Twitch would be unable to pay them this past weekend via email.

“Payouts to the financial institution associated with your Twitch account have been blocked as a result of sanctions,” reads the email, according to The Washington Post. “Twitch complies with economic sanctions imposed by the United States and other governments, and is complying with those imposed in response to the situation in Ukraine. These sanctions may limit or impact your access to payouts, ability to monetize your stream, and/or financially support other creators.”

 The email further elaborated that Twitch would make efforts to pay its Russian streamers as soon as the platform is able, if they don’t have access to a different financial institution. 

Russian streamers are sharing their frustrations and raising awareness about their situation on Twitter. Twitch partner Commander_Ivy voiced their frustrations in a tweet, mentioning that PayPal no longer works as a feasible alternative. 

So PayPal has stopped working in Russia today and Twitch will no longer pay Russian streamers. Thank you very much for cutting my only source of income. I am sure this will solve all of the world's problems.

— Lina Vdovina 👩🏼‍🚀🚀 (@Commander_Ivy) March 5, 2022

“So PayPal has stopped working in Russia today and Twitch will no longer pay Russian streamers,” said Commander_Ivy. “Thank you very much for cutting my only source of income. I am sure this will solve all of the world’s problems.”

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues to impact the livelihoods of Russian and Ukrainian content creators in many ways, different parts of the Twitch community have come together in solidarity with Ukraine. On Feb. 28, popular Twitch streamer Hasan Piker raised $100,000 for Ukraine relief in partnership with CARE.