The UK has sanctioned three crypto exchanges and two payment platforms suspected of helping Russia evade financial sanctions, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office announced Thursday.
The targets include Xeltox Enterprises, a Vancouver-registered company that owns Cryptomus, alongside Kyrgyz firms TokenSpot and Tsunami Payments. Processing KG, which operates the payment service VexPay and is owned by Kyrgyzstan's Ministry of Finance, was also designated. The notice cited activities linked to Heleket for Cryptomus and noted that two of the targeted companies processed transactions with the A7 network, a Kremlin-backed financial network used to circumvent sanctions on Russia's financial sector.
Beyond asset freezes, the four companies face internet services sanctions, requiring social media platforms, internet providers and app stores to take reasonable steps to prevent UK users from accessing their sites and applications.
Processing KG's director, Ulan Bukabaev, was also sanctioned. The UK describes A7 as an illicit finance network claimed to have moved more than $90 billion last year, roughly half of Russia's annual military spending according to the government.
The crypto designations are part of a broader 38-target package. The UK also sanctioned Russian oil companies Zarubezhneft and INK Capital, bringing UK sanctions coverage to more than 90 percent of Russia's oil production capacity. The package added 12 shadow fleet tankers, bringing the total sanctioned to over 600, and designated 17 entities and individuals involved in supplying goods critical to Russia's missile and drone production.
The UK, US and EU have targeted multiple crypto businesses in Russia sanctions packages in recent years. In May, the UK sanctioned Justin Sun's HTX and other crypto firms for providing financial services to A7. The US subsequently designated A7 as a transnational criminal organization, while the EU has moved toward banning all crypto transactions with Russian entities.
