CoinVoice has recently learned that, according to CoinDesk, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today announced sanctions against multiple companies, exchanges, and executives associated with the Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex and the ruble-backed stablecoin A7A5.
According to OFAC, Garantex is suspected of handling over $100 million in ransomware and darknet transactions. After its network domain was seized and $26 million in funds were frozen, the parties quickly established Grinex to continue operations.
The A7A5 stablecoin is issued by the Kyrgyz company Old Vector and is supported by the Russian state bank Promsvyazbank. Blockchain analytics companies report that the daily trading volume of this stablecoin has reached $1 billion, with a total trading volume exceeding $51 billion, and it is considered an important tool for evading sanctions.
This sanction action was coordinated and executed by the U.S. Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, aimed at cutting off digital asset channels used for ransomware attacks and evading sanctions. [Original link]
