Binance, one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges by trading volume, will stop processing transactions involving HTX, EXMO and nine other crypto-asset and payment platforms from August 23 as it implements new restrictions tied to recent regulatory developments.

The affected platform entries are Rapira, Aifory Pro, ABCeX, WhiteBird, NoOnecrypto, Tradex, Monease, BitPapa, Exnode/Exnode Pay, HTX under Huobi Global SA and EXMO Ltd. The same entities are covered by European Union transaction restrictions taking effect on August 23 under the bloc's latest Russia sanctions measures.

Transactions involving the listed platforms after their respective cutoff dates may be held for compliance review, while wallets connected to restricted transfers may also face limitations.

HTX and EXMO Join August 23 Restrictions

The August 23 group forms part of the EU's 21st sanctions package against Russia, which expanded transaction prohibitions to crypto-asset and payment providers established outside the bloc that regulators identified as frustrating sanctions measures. The package is the latest in the EU's series of sanctions rounds imposed on Russia since its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and by listing providers established outside the bloc it extends the screening burden to globally active exchanges whose users transact with them.

HTX has already faced sanctions-related restrictions elsewhere. The U.K. sanctioned Huobi Global S.A. in May and listed HTX and HTX Exchange as associated names, citing alleged financial links involving the A7 network and Garantex, a crypto exchange designated by U.S. authorities in 2022.

The designation subsequently led several centralized exchanges to tighten screening of HTX-linked transfers and wallet activity. HTX has maintained that Huobi Global S.A. is distinct from the online exchange and that its trading and withdrawal services remain operational.

A7 Restrictions Took Effect August 13

Binance had already stopped processing transactions involving A7 Nigeria, A7 Africa and PilotFinance Ltd from August 13. Those three entities are also subject to transaction bans under the EU sanctions package.

The measures target parts of the wider A7 payments network and its crypto infrastructure. The EU also introduced a mechanism allowing future country-wide restrictions on crypto service providers in jurisdictions that persistently facilitate sanctions circumvention; no country had been placed under that broader mechanism when the package was adopted. If activated, that tool would move the bloc beyond entity-by-entity listings and apply restrictions to crypto providers across an entire jurisdiction, a scope change with implications for exchanges and payment firms serving users in non-EU markets.

Shelbit and Aban Tether Blocked After U.S. Sanctions

Separate restrictions involving Shelbit and Aban Tether Exchange took effect at Binance on August 7, the same day the U.S. Treasury added the two exchanges to sanctions lists targeting Iran-linked financial activity. The same-day timing illustrates how quickly U.S. designations can translate into operational changes at major platforms.

The Treasury designated Shelbit-linked entities and Aban Tether, citing transactions connected to sanctioned Iranian organizations and exchanges. OFAC also published wallet addresses and corporate entities associated with the action, its standard practice for digital-asset designations, which allows exchanges and blockchain-analytics firms to screen linked on-chain activity.

Binance's next scheduled expansion takes effect on August 23, when transactions involving Rapira, Aifory Pro, ABCeX, WhiteBird, NoOnecrypto, Tradex, Monease, BitPapa, Exnode/Exnode Pay, HTX and EXMO Ltd will become subject to the restrictions.