US Sanctions Ruble-Backed Stablecoin Issuer A7A5 in Crackdown on Sanctions Evasion Network

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has expanded its sanctions list to include several Russian companies and individuals accused of helping to circumvent international restrictions. Among the newly designated entities is A7 LLC, the company behind the most popular ruble-backed stablecoin — A7A5.

Targeting the Largest Ruble-Pegged Stablecoin Founded in 2024 by Moldovan businessman Ilan Shor in partnership with the Russian state-owned defense bank Promsvyazbank (PSB), A7 LLC launched the A7A5 stablecoin a year later in Kyrgyzstan.

According to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, A7A5 has become the most widely used ruble-backed token, with cumulative transactions reaching $41.2 billion and a current market capitalization of $521 million. Over $1 billion is transferred through it daily, with trading volumes exceeding $8.5 billion. Most liquidity is concentrated on the Meer and Grinex exchanges, though the token is also available on TRON and Ethereum decentralized exchanges. With this move, the U.S. joins the UK and EU, which sanctioned A7 in May and July respectively. Also added to the OFAC list is Old Vector LLC, a Kyrgyz issuer of A7A5.

Another Blow: Garantex Founder and His Network OFAC has also sanctioned Sergey Mendeleev, co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Garantex, already on the OFAC blacklist. In March 2025, U.S. authorities seized its website, froze $26 million in USDT, and charged its operators with money laundering.

The Garantex incident was one of the reasons Russian entities turned to A7A5 — a stablecoin not as easily frozen as USDT. Mendeleev is also the creator of the ruble-backed stablecoin RUBT and runs other sanctioned entities, including Exved — a cross-border payments platform for Russian exporters and importers. Exved uses USDT while masking links to Russian users.

Also listed is Indefini Smartbank, which provides technical services to Exved and the Grinex exchange — one of the main trading venues for A7A5.

Stablecoins Resilient Despite Sanctions Pressure Despite the growing number of sanctions against entities using stablecoins to evade restrictions, the market remains robust. USDT continues to dominate with a circulation of $164.86 billion, while the total stablecoin market cap rose by $2.88 billion over the past week to $271.62 billion. USDC holds $65.22 billion in supply, and its issuer recently announced plans to launch its own Layer-1 blockchain network. Fintech giant Stripe revealed similar ambitions. Other projects, such as Ethena USDe, PayPal PYUSD, Ripple RLUSD, and Skydollar USDS, have seen monthly growth ranging from 105% to 16.23%. A7A5 has also grown in the same period — its supply doubled, though it now remains below the $500 million mark.

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