The United States sanctions Russian cryptocurrency payment networks, involving ruble-backed stablecoins and exchanges

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced today sanctions against multiple companies, exchanges, and executives associated with the Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex and the ruble-backed stablecoin A7A5.

According to OFAC, Garantex is suspected of handling over $100 million in ransomware and dark web transactions. After its network domain was seized and $26 million in funds were frozen, the parties quickly established Grinex to continue operations.

The A7A5 stablecoin is issued by the Kyrgyzstan company Old Vector and is supported by the Russian state-owned bank Promsvyazbank. Blockchain analytics firms report that the stablecoin's daily trading volume has reached $1 billion, with a total trading volume exceeding $51 billion, making it an important tool for evading sanctions.

This sanction action is coordinated and executed by the U.S. Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, aimed at cutting off digital asset channels used for ransomware attacks and evading sanctions.