U.S. sanctions target A7 Network after FinCEN traced over $17B in transfers tied to alleged sanctions evasion and crypto activity.
U.S. officials have taken steps to disrupt the Russia-affiliated A7 Network following an investigation that identified over $17 billion in transactions linked to companies suspected of helping sanctioned parties evade restrictions.
Treasury officials announced new actions against the A7 Network on October 1, including new sanctions from OFAC and a proposed rule from FinCEN restricting payments by and to A7 Sub-Agents.
Treasury characterized A7 as a shadow banking network. OFAC designated A7 as a major transnational criminal organization, subjecting the network’s property and interests in property to U.S. jurisdiction to blocking. Other entities in which a blocked person owns a 50% or greater interest may be subject to blocking as well.
FinCEN Traces $17B Through A7 Shadow Banking Network
FinCEN reports that A7 Sub-Agents helped facilitate more than $17 billion in global transactions from January 2025 to June 2026. According to Treasury, A7 Sub-Agents reportedly took steps to hide information about transaction sponsors.
Treasury officials also reported that A7 employees had control over Sub-Agent bank accounts and used custom virtual private network software to hide their physical locations.
Today, Treasury took unprecedented action against the A7 Network, a shadow banking network with ties to Russia used by the Iranian regime to evade sanctions as part of Operation Economic Outcast.
— Treasury Department (@USTreasury) October 1, 2026
Treasury’s @FinCENnews proposed a rule that would prohibit transmittals of funds…
Authorities claim the network used false import and export documentation and other false information about products to disguise illicit transactions as legitimate business activity.
Treasury officials associate operations of network A7 with Iranian oil and weapons transactions and other transactions involving the Central Bank of Iran and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
One Sub-Agent and an affiliated company received almost $140 million from other sanctioned companies identified by the Treasury Department as involved in sanctions evasion related to Iran. Another Sub-Agent sent about $1.6 million to a company identified by U.S. officials as involved in sanctions evasion and weapons purchases.
A7A5 Crypto Token Adds a Digital Payment Route
Digital assets were part of the network. Treasury listed the ruble-denominated A7A5 token issued by the blocked entity Old Vector LLC as a blocked asset. According to Treasury, A7A5 is a token intended to help finance transactions globally and provide revenue to other blocked entities, including infrastructure providers.
Treasury cited the A7 entity’s connections to Nobitex, an Iranian cryptocurrency exchange subject to OFAC sanctions in June, and to connections with North Korean cryptocurrency thefts. These are statements by U.S. government agencies that have imposed sanctions on these entities and are not court determinations in criminal cases.
US Treasury Sanctions Russian Shadow Banking Network A7 Network Over $17 Billion in Fund Transfers
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 2, 2026
The US Treasury Department has sanctioned A7 Network, a Russia-linked shadow banking network. OFAC designated it as a significant transnational criminal organization, while FinCEN… pic.twitter.com/xvLWn5wR8i
FinCEN’s proposed payment blocking rule is not yet finalized. If implemented, the rule would prohibit covered U.S. financial institutions from sending payments to and receiving payments from specified A7 Sub-Agents, among other things, involving money and convertible virtual currency.
FinCEN has issued an advisory noting risk factors, including use of shell companies to conduct unusually high volumes of transfers and other indicators of fraud and suspicious international payment activity.
Read More: Tether Freezes $550 Million in Iran-Linked USDT as Senate Report Raises New Questions
Financial institutions required to file related Suspicious Activity Reports should use the term FIN-2026-A7NETWORK. The proposed restriction on transfers will be subject to public comment for 30 days following publication in the Federal Register. The existing OFAC designation is currently effective while this proposed rulemaking is pending.
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