CryptoSlate
The UK National Crime Agency on Aug. 31 issued its first nationwide industry alert on the A7 network, directing banks, payment providers and crypto firms to scrutinise counterparties, intermediary wallets and cross-border infrastructure tied to Russian clients. Rachael Herbert, Director of the National Economic Crime Centre (NECC), framed the alert as part of the agency's broader push against the nexus between organised crime and sanctions evasion. Alongside the alert, the UK government laid out plans to double the maximum civil penalty available to the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), lifting the ceiling to the greater of £2 million or 100% of the breach value, up from £1 million or 50%.
Why it matters
The alert marks a deliberate UK enforcement shift: from naming sanctioned entities to tracing the payment routes that keep those networks liquid. A7 told clients it processed more than $86 billion in its first year, a self-reported figure UK authorities are nonetheless actively engaging with rather than dismissing. The network is alleged to use SWIFT, third-country financial institutions and broader international payment infrastructure to move funds around sanctions. UK agencies earlier assessed that crypto liquidity moved from Garantex to Kyrgyzstan-registered Grinex via A7A5, a ruble-backed token, after Garantex faced enforcement. By May 2025, Grinex had logged more than $1.2 billion each in incoming and outgoing USDT transaction volume, and US Treasury said Garantex employees helped build Grinex infrastructure while users regained access or equivalent value through A7A5.
Market impact
For UK-facing crypto firms, the compliance perimeter just widened well past name screening. The alert explicitly flags intermediary wallets, transaction hashes, decentralised exchanges, mixers, OTC and peer-to-peer routes, no-KYC services, chain-hopping, VPN use and repeated infrastructure changes as signals that warrant further scrutiny. Sanctions exposure now persists through the route, not just the destination: a renamed exchange, re-jurisdicted wallet or re-railed payment service does not automatically clear an obligation.
Frequently asked questions
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What did the UK NCA announce on Aug. 31 about the A7 network?
The National Crime Agency issued its first nationwide industry alert on the A7 network, directing banks, payment providers and crypto firms to examine counterparties, intermediary wallets and cross-border infrastructure linked to Russian clients.
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How much money does the A7 network say it processed?
A7 told clients it processed more than $86 billion in its first year, though that figure is self-reported and has not been independently verified as a measure of illicit flows.
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What changes is the UK proposing for OFSI civil penalties?
The government plans to double the maximum civil penalty ceiling for sanctions breaches to the greater of £2 million or 100% of the breach value, up from £1 million or 50%. The change still requires legislation and has no effective date.
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How did crypto liquidity move from Garantex to Grinex?
UK agencies assessed that liquidity moved from Garantex to Kyrgyzstan-registered Grinex through A7A5, a ruble-backed token, after Garantex faced enforcement, with US Treasury saying Garantex employees helped build Grinex infrastructure.
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What compliance signals did the UK alert flag for crypto firms?
The alert flags intermediary wallets, transaction hashes, decentralised exchanges, mixers, OTC and peer-to-peer routes, no-KYC services, chain-hopping, VPN use and repeated infrastructure changes as signals warranting further scrutiny.
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