Overview
- The UK announced on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, an 18-designation sanctions package that takes immediate effect and targets shadow finance used to evade Russia sanctions.
- For the first time the government has applied Regulation 17A-style correspondent and payment prohibitions to digital-asset platforms, forcing UK banks and Virtual Asset Service Providers to freeze funds and trace linked blockchain flows.
- Designated targets include Huobi Global S.A. (HTX), EXMO, Bitpapa, Rapira Group LLC, a Kyrgyz bank and several Georgia and UAE-registered firms that UK officials say helped route transactions for the A7 network.
- The Foreign Office describes the A7 network as a Kremlin-linked payments pipeline that it says moved roughly $90 billion last year and alleges HTX channelled about $1.5 billion into Kremlin-linked hands while UK regulators continue separate legal action against HTX.
- Officials say the move extends allied pressure on crypto-enabled sanctions evasion, will force changes in how exchanges screen and route payments, and immediately bars UK users and firms from transacting with the listed entities.