Sanções da UE atingem stablecoin A7A5 ligada à Rússia e seus apoiadores

UE desfere golpe contra infraestrutura financeira digital russa

O pacote mais recente de sanções europeias mirou diretamente no coração das tentativas de Moscou de contornar o sistema financeiro global. A stablecoin A7A5 - até então operando nas sombras - teve suas transações congeladas junto com toda sua rede de apoio.

Bruxelas fecha o cerco

As medidas atingem não apenas a criptomoeda em si, mas todas as entidades e indivíduos envolvidos em seu desenvolvimento, distribuição e liquidação. A mensagem é clara: a UE não permitirá que ativos digitais se tornem veículos para evadir sanções.

O timing não poderia ser mais estratégico - enquanto o Kremlin busca alternativas ao sistema SWIFT, a resposta europeia demonstra que vigilância regulatória e enforcement não são conceitos do século passado.

Mais uma prova de que, no jogo entre inovação financeira e soberania nacional, os estados ainda detêm as cartas mais fortes - mesmo que precisem aprender novas regras para jogá-las.

Russian ruble-backed A7A5 stablecoin hit with sanctions

The EU has introduced the package to target Russia’s growing use of crypto and stablecoins to bypass existing financial restrictions linked to the war in Ukraine. According to the EU Council, the stablecoin A7A5 created with Russian state support has emerged as a prominent tool for financing activities supporting the war of aggression.

To that end, sanctions will be directed to the developer of A7A5, the Kyrgyz issuer of that coin, and the operator of a platform where significant volumes of A7A5 are traded. Transactions involving this stablecoin have also been prohibited across the EU.

Even after being sanctioned by Western authorities, A7A5 has become the world’s largest non–US dollar stablecoin by market cap, reaching $500 million in early October. Chainalysis stated that the stablecoin has been playing a central role in Russia’s crypto-driven trade settlement strategy.

US officials also linked A7A5 to Grinex, the successor to the blacklisted exchange Garantex, which has been accused of laundering millions in illicit funds.

Additionally, Chainalysis revealed that although Europe as a whole remains one of the world’s most mature crypto markets, Russia has experienced an exceptional surge in activity to the extent that Russia has more crypto users than any other market in Europe. 

According to on-chain data, between July 2024 and June 2025, $376.3 billion worth of transactions were conducted using cryptocurrency in Russia.

The report also shows that large transfers worth more than $10 million increased by 86% in Russia between the middle of 2024 and the middle of 2025. This is almost twice as fast as the 44% growth seen in the rest of Europe.

Chainalysis states that the country’s crypto economy has grown beyond retail speculation. For instance, DeFi activity increased eight times in early 2025 before leveling off at three and a half times the baseline level in mid-2023. 

Russia’s biggest gold producer is on the sanctions list

The EU prohibits its operators from engaging with the Russian National Payment Card System (‘Mir’) or the Fast Payments System (‘SBP’). 

Major restrictions are also imposed on maintaining economic relationships with entities active in nine Russian special economic zones. These zones are central to Russia’s industrial and technological capacity, hosting enterprises engaged in the production or development of goods contributing to the Russian war effort.

Additionally, it restricts the provision of AI services, high-performance computing services, and commercial space-based services to Russian entities, including the Russian government. The EU is also adding Russia’s largest gold producer to a list, which will further limit its sources of income.

Additionally, the package imposed tight sanctions on twelve companies in China, one in Hong Kong, three in India, and two in Thailand that directly support Russia’s military and industrial complex. The names on the list were targeted for making it possible to get around export restrictions on high-tech items such as microelectronics, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and computer numerical control (CNC) machine tools.

Want your project in front of crypto’s top minds? Feature it in our next industry report, where data meets impact.