Treasury targets Russia-Iran shadow banking network A7 in sanctions crackdown

The U.S. Treasury has intensified its crackdown on Russian shadow banking networks supporting Iran, with a new focus on the A7 Network. On October 1, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated this Russia-linked platform as a transnational criminal organization used to evade sanctions. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) also proposed a rule to bar U.S. firms from transmitting funds to A7-linked entities, potentially disrupting operations across 435 financial institutions in 83 countries as of June 2026.

The A7 Network was established by sanctioned Russian state defense bank Promsvyazbank, fugitive Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor, and Kyrgyzstan’s sanctioned Keremet Bank. FinCEN estimates the network processed over $17 billion in U.S. dollar-denominated transactions from January 2025 through June 2026. The Russian government reportedly views the A7 Network as a strategically important enterprise.

Russia and Iran are deepening financial ties to resist sanctions, including linking their card networks and integrating Iranian banks into Russia’s financial messaging system. A Russia-focused crypto service, Aifory Pro, transferred nearly $2 million in crypto assets to the Iranian exchange Abantether, leading to sanctions from the U.K. and the U.S.

The A7 Network uses its ruble-backed stablecoin, A7A5, as a bridge to more liquid digital assets like Tether’s USDT, which is then converted into fiat currency. FinCEN highlights the network’s reliance on USDT, the largest stablecoin globally, and notes that 84% of Iran-linked wallets transacted in USDT.

FinCEN’s proposed rule, set to take effect after a 30-day comment period, aims to identify and scrutinize A7-controlled entities. Treasury is urged to engage with regulators in permissive jurisdictions like Hong Kong, the UAE, and Kyrgyzstan, and to target intermediaries serving sanctioned Iranian actors.