Putin Punked As Roblox Game Robux Currency Is Now Worth More Than The Russian Ruble

As sanctions continue to be implemented against Russia, the Russian ruble has been overtaken by the Robux. If you are not familiar with what a Robux is, it is in-game currency in the popular kid's game, Roblox.

The international community has been taking aim on Russia's economy with stiff economic sanctions since its invasion of Ukraine. The hope is that the sanctions will pressure Vladimir Putin to withdraw Russian troops from its neighboring country and bring about a return to peace. As more sanctions have been imposed in the days since the invasion began, they have started taking a toll on the Russian ruble. In fact, the ruble has taken such a drastic hit that the Robux is now worth more.

The Robux is an in-game currency used in the popular video game, Roblox. It is often referred to as "that game your kids play that looks like Minecraft but isn't." While the game has been around for more than a decade, it saw a resurgence during the recent pandemic as kids were forced to stay home from school. The game currently has over 100 million active players, and has driven up the value of its in-game currency to be valued at approximately $.0125. That makes the Robux worth more than the Russian ruble, which is currently trading at $.010 (as of yesterday).

Russia's ruble has been declining since sanctions began being implemented. It has lost approximately 30% of its value in the last few days in relation to the U.S. dollar. Before its most recent decline, it was trading at $.013.

"We will ... ban the transactions of Russia's central bank and freeze all its assets, to prevent it from financing Putin's war," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated in a statement on Sunday.

Thursday the Kremlin responded to the sharp decline of its currency, saying, "Russia has financial resources enough to maintain the financial system in the light of sanctions and external threats."

Peach at Capital Economics has estimated that approximately 50% of Russia's reserves are now off limits to the country. Russia is a leading exporter of oil and gas, which have not yet been a target of any sanctions. However, the current sanctions will make it harder for the country to sell its other exports. As the ruble falls, it will make it much more expensive to buy Russian oil and gas, as inflation is pushed up.

A senior US administration official stated, "Our strategy, to put it simply, is to make sure that the Russian economy goes backward as long as President Putin decides to forward with his invasion of Ukraine."