The British Foreign Office has sanctioned 18 entities, including the crypto exchanges HTX (formerly Huobi) and Exmo. The UK sanctions against HTX target a Russian crypto network with an annual volume exceeding USD 90 billion.
HTX ranks among the oldest global crypto trading platforms. It handles trading, settlement and custody of digital assets. Such exchanges allow capital flows to move across borders. Consequently, they are considered attractive channels for circumventing financial restrictions. The platform launched in China in 2013. After the takeover by associates of TRON founder Justin Sun in 2022, it has operated under the name HTX since its rebranding in 2023. Moreover, the British financial regulator FCA has been pursuing a case over unauthorised crypto advertising to British consumers since February 2026. Since then, HTX has remained on the authority's warning list. At the same time, according to Similarweb, 31.64% of desktop traffic recently came from Russia, the largest share of any single origin jurisdiction. The designations took effect immediately. Furthermore, they expand a regime that has cumulatively comprised more than 3,300 Russia-related sanctions since 2022.
The A7 network: how Russia circumvents sanctions through crypto
The so-called A7 network is a Kremlin-backed system for circumventing Western sanctions. It finances the procurement of military goods and also processes revenues from Russian oil sales through digital channels. Over the past year, this structure moved more than USD 90 billion according to British authorities. That corresponds to roughly half of annual Russian military spending. Therefore, the infrastructure is considered a systemic component of Russia's war financing.
At the centre of the network sits the ruble-backed stablecoin A7A5. This token is said to have reached more than USD 100 billion in cumulative on-chain transactions by January 2026, less than a year after its launch. The reach spread across roughly 250,000 transfers through more than 41,000 accounts. As a result, A7A5 temporarily ranked as the largest non-dollar-backed stablecoin worldwide. After the imposition of Western sanctions, however, the daily volume fell from a peak of USD 1.5 billion to roughly USD 500 million.
The architecture emerged as a successor structure to the exchange Garantex, which was sanctioned by the United States and the EU in 2022. After US authorities seized its domain in March 2025, the activity gradually shifted to new platforms. The British sanctions authority OFSI had already warned about the misuse of crypto assets for sanctions evasion in January 2026. Ultimately, an escalation spiral is taking shape: each sanctioned exchange is followed by a new structure with a similar function.
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HTX and Exmo in the crosshairs: evidence of direct links
The traffic profile of HTX points to a strong Russian user base. The Similarweb data places 31.64% of desktop traffic in Russia. Brazil follows with 6.61%, while Ukraine with 6.07% and India with 4.17% rank well behind. Hong Kong sits even further back with 2.59%, which underscores the Russian dominance in the traffic profile. This concentration stands out against the FCA case that has been running since February 2026. According to British authorities, moreover, an unnamed large global crypto exchange is said to have channelled more than USD 1.5 billion into the hands of the Kremlin. However, this allegation was not officially linked to HTX.
For Exmo, the connections are more concretely documented. The platform processed direct transactions of more than USD 1 million with Garantex. Sergey Mendeleev also appears on the list. Furthermore, he is documented as a co-founder of Garantex as well as the successor platforms Exved and InDeFi Bank. His exact connection to Exmo Exchange, however, does not emerge clearly from the available information. Overall, a picture of staggered proximity to Russian sanctions-evasion structures takes shape, ranging from documented transactions to personnel overlaps.
UK sanctions for HTX: Western coordination and consequences
The measure falls within a phase of tightened British crypto regulation. Since 1 May 2026, a binding sanctions compliance obligation has applied to all registered crypto firms in the United Kingdom. The current designations thus rank among the first operational applications after this obligation took effect. Therefore, they send a clear signal to platforms with high exposure to Russia.
"If the Kremlin thinks it can evade our sanctions by hiding behind crypto networks […], it is gravely mistaken. […] We are attacking the infrastructure that supports its war economy." - Yvette Cooper, Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom
The British initiative does not stand alone. In April 2026, the EU adopted its 20th sanctions package against Russia. Its crypto measures have been in force since 24 May 2026 and target distributors of tokens such as A7A5. Beforehand, OFAC, the UK and the EU had already sanctioned the Garantex successor exchange Grinex. The action unfolded across several stages: OFAC in March 2025, the UK in August 2025 and the EU in October 2025 with its 19th package. In April 2026, Grinex ceased operations after a cyberattack. According to estimates, Western sanctions have so far cost Russia more than USD 450 billion, the equivalent of two years of war financing.
What the designations mean for crypto exchanges worldwide
Operationally, the sanctions for HTX and Exmo will initially mean the freezing of all assets in the United Kingdom, along with a ban on British financial services. That is the usual consequence of a UK designation. For the two exchanges, the measures fit into an established regime that has comprised more than 3,300 Russia-related designations since February 2022. Additionally, a Kyrgyz bank that, according to the British Foreign Office, processed payments for the A7 network was co-designated, as were three Georgian companies. The latter operate Russia-focused exchanges. This geographic expansion into Central Asia and the Caucasus shows that the sanctions architecture reaches beyond the narrower crypto sector.
The economic pressure on Russia can be quantified. As a result of this pressure, Moscow lowered its growth forecast for the current year from 1.3% to 0.4% in May 2026 and halved its expectation for 2027. For other exchanges with high exposure to Russia, the designations consequently mark a new risk landscape. In it, a high share of Russian users becomes a direct regulatory liability factor.
