UK imposes sanctions on 18 cryptocurrency companies linked to $90 billion Russian war network

Companies operating in the UK must now freeze assets and transactions linked to the sanctioned platforms.

The UK has targeted 18 cryptocurrency platforms, banks and financial networks used by the Kremlin-backed “A7” payment network to bypass international economic restrictions.

The sanctioned entities are accused of processing more than $90 billion in 2025 to finance the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Cryptocurrency platforms linked to illicit Russian flows

TRM Laboratories report reveals Huobi, Exmo Exchange, Bitpapa and Rapira Group were among the exchanges targeted, with Huobi alone sending more than $4.9 billion in cross-chain transactions to UK sanctioned entities and the A7 Network since 2021. Additionally, $1.13 billion of this occurred 14 months after Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex was delisted in March 2025, with $838 million specifically directed to the A7 Network in Last year.

According to TRM results, Russia-related cryptocurrency activity has not slowed down after Garantex It collapses But they have instead been migrated to exchanges and post-payment platforms such as Rapira, Aifory Pro, Grinex.io, and ABCex. The Exmo exchange is said to have directly transacted more than $19.5 million with sanctioned entities such as Garantex and Chatex, while BitPapa has also reportedly transferred millions to these actors.

The report indicates that Rapira transferred more than $543 million, including $375.6 million linked to Grinex.io, while Aifory Pro transferred more than $189 million, of which $175.2 million belonged to ABCex. Meanwhile, ABCex itself recorded $355 million worth of transactions across the listed companies, sending $175.2 million to Aifory Pro, $133.4 million to Garantex, and $38.1 million to Rapira.

The government has now added all 18 sanctioned entities to the UK’s consolidated list, with companies operating in the country now required to freeze any associated assets and block transactions involving listed companies.

“If the Kremlin thinks it can evade our sanctions by hiding behind cryptocurrency networks and shadow financial systems, it is deeply mistaken,” Secretary of State Yvette Cooper said.

She added that the restrictions aim to cut off financial flows that support Putin’s war in Ukraine.

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Illicit cryptocurrency activities related to Russia have rebounded

The new measures also extend to individuals linked to the A7 network. The government says in its report that the group is backed by a Kyrgyz bank suspected of processing payments within the system, along with a major global cryptocurrency exchange believed to have transferred more than $1.5 billion to financial channels linked to the Kremlin.

Meanwhile, TRM Laboratories analyzed separately find out Illicit cryptocurrency activity has risen sharply in the past year. According to the company, most of that was related to Russia-linked trades, with A7’s A7A5 token contributing $72 billion worth of trades alone while the group’s own portfolios accounted for another $39 billion. Most of this money reportedly flowed through Garantex and Greenex.