The U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has imposed sanctions on a network of entities tied to the Russian ruble-backed stablecoin A7A5 and the now-shuttered crypto exchange Garantex. Garantex, which was established in 2019 and previously licensed in Estonia, allegedly facilitated over $100 million in illicit transactions linked to ransomware activities. Following the seizure of its domain and $26 million in March, Garantex's operations transitioned to Grinex. The A7A5 token — backed by the sanctioned Promsvyazbank and convicted politician Ilan Shor — reportedly processed around $1 billion daily and was instrumental in allowing Russian entities to bypass international sanctions. Alongside corporate sanctions, key Garantex executives were also blacklisted. Treasury officials stated the sanctions targeting Garantex and the A7A5 token aim to disrupt digital asset channels used for ransomware and sanctions evasion, highlighting the risks posed by cryptocurrency in facilitating illicit activities.

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