The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned the Russia-linked A7 Network as a transnational criminal organization, alleging that the shadow banking group helped Russia, Iran and others move money around sanctions. The action was announced on Oct. 1 under a Treasury initiative called Operation Economic Outcast.

The operation combines the sanctions designation with a proposed rule from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) listed A7 as a transnational criminal organization. Any A7 property under U.S. jurisdiction is now blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from doing business with the network. Companies owned 50% or more by blocked persons may face the same restrictions. Violations can result in civil or criminal penalties. The designation takes effect immediately, while the proposed FinCEN rule would create additional restrictions only if it is finalized.

According to Treasury, A7 was created and backed by sanctioned individuals and is led by Ilan Shor, a sanctioned and convicted fraudster. The network used companies in other countries, known as Sub-Agents, to send and receive payments. Although the firms appeared independent, A7 staff controlled their websites and bank accounts.

Treasury said the staff used custom virtual private networks to conceal their locations. They also used fabricated trade documents and misleading product descriptions to make payments appear to be ordinary commercial transactions.

FinCEN found that A7 Sub-Agents processed more than $17 billion between January 2025 and June 2026. TRM Labs said A7 maintained accounts at approximately 435 financial institutions in at least 83 countries.

Treasury linked some transactions to Iran’s Central Bank and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. One Sub-Agent and a sister company received nearly $140 million from entities connected to Iranian sanctions evasion. A separate Sub-Agent sent about $1.6 million to a company linked to Iranian weapons procurement. Treasury also connected the network to Nobitex, an Iranian crypto exchange sanctioned in June, and to North Korean crypto hacks.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “If you facilitate illicit finance for America’s adversaries, you will lose access to the U.S. financial system.”

An X post by Shin (@hey_itsmyturn), published on Oct. 1, stated:

Operation Economic Outcast targets the 𝐀𝟕 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤, a Russia-linked shadow banking system used by Iran, the IRGC, Hamas, Russian illicit-finance actors, cybercriminals, and sanctions evaders. OFAC designated A7 as a significant transnational criminal organization, while… — Shin (@hey_itsmyturn) October 1, 2026

The post is available at X.

A7A5 Stablecoin and Proposed Restrictions

Crypto transactions were linked to the network through A7A5, a ruble-backed token issued by Old Vector LLC. Treasury sanctioned Old Vector in August 2025 and considers the token blocked property.

TRM Labs reported that more than 180 entities processed at least $179.1 billion in A7A5 transactions between February 2025 and June 2026. That amount may overlap with fiat transfers and is not directly comparable with the $17 billion in transfers identified by FinCEN. Some blockchain researchers have questioned how much of the reported A7A5 volume represents real activity between independent users.

FinCEN’s proposed rule would prohibit covered U.S. financial institutions from sending or receiving funds involving identified Sub-Agents. The measure would apply to both traditional money and crypto addresses.

FinCEN also issued an alert identifying red flags, including shell companies with unexplained transaction volumes and suspicious trade documents. Banks filing reports are asked to use the term FIN-2026-A7NETWORK.

The U.S. action follows a United Kingdom warning issued on Aug. 31 concerning A7’s use of foreign firms to circumvent Russian sanctions. The proposed U.S. rule will be subject to a 30-day public comment period after publication in the Federal Register. It is listed under docket FINCEN-2026-0265, and no final rule has been issued. The comment period and any subsequent final rule will determine whether the proposed transaction restrictions become binding on covered U.S. financial institutions.

The Treasury announcement is available at home.treasury.gov.