Ruble-Secured A7A5 Stablecoin Experiences $9.4B Volume on Grinex, Garantex’s Heir

The purported successor to the sanctioned digital currency exchange Garantex, Grinex, has reportedly processed upwards of $9.3 billion in transactions involving the Ruble-backed stablecoin A7A5. There is considerable speculation surrounding the token’s applications, particularly since a significant portion of these transactions has been traced back to merely 124 wallets, according to a Financial Times report dated 25 June 2025.

At present, the only trading platform listing A7A5 is Uniswap. It holds a market capitalization of $151 million, with an estimated 12 million tokens in circulation. As per Grinex’s Telegram channel, this Ruble-backed stablecoin can be traded against the Russian Ruble as well as USDT and the US dollar.

According to analysts from Elliptic referenced by the Financial Times, the transaction patterns appear rigid, suggesting internal fund transfers instead of genuine crypto token adoption. In addition, the blockchain analytics and crypto-focused anti-money laundering (AML) network Global Record had indicated in March that it is believed Garantex had shifted its market fluidity and customer assets to Grinex.

These insights strengthen the possibility that Grinex has absorbed a portion of Garantex’s user base, though Grinex has denied any direct association with the sanctioned crypto asset trading network.

Tom Robinson, co-founder of Elliptic, commented, “Users of Garantex who had outstanding balances at the time of its closure might find those balances transferred to new accounts created on Grinex.”

BREAKING: A new Russian stablecoin, A7A5, has quietly moved $9.3bn through a Kyrgyz crypto exchange in just four months, a Financial Times investigation reveals. The coin is linked to a sanctioned Russian defence bank and fugitive Moldovan oligarch Ilan Șor, and is believed to…

— GeoInsider (@InsiderGeo) June 25, 2025

 

On-chain data from Etherscan and Tronscan shows that since its launch a few months back, A7A5 has attracted around 24,000 users. The stablecoin is backed 1:1 by Ruble reserves from Promsvyazbank, a Moscow-based institution facing sanctions for its financing of the Russian military.

The Ruble-backed stablecoin’s circulating supply exceeded $140 million within a week following its launch, showcasing strong market demand from crypto users in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

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A7A5 Stablecoin Associated With Ilan Shor – Sanctioned Moldovan Tycoon

However, analysts remain doubtful regarding the wider adoption of the Ruble-backed stablecoin due to the token’s concentrated activities and ambiguity surrounding fund origins.

Moreover, the Centre for Information Resilience had revealed connections between the A7A5 stablecoin and Ilan Shor, a sanctioned Moldovan entrepreneur convicted of fraud, who promoted the stablecoin at the recent St Petersburg International Economic Forum in Russia.

Nonetheless, A7A5 claims to have cut ties with Shor in May.

Grinex has emphasized its focus on introducing alternatives to USDT rather than creating mechanisms to bypass sanctions.

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A spokesperson for Grinex was quoted by another news outlet stating, “We strongly disapprove of any form of illegal activity, including sanctions evasion and money laundering. All suspicious transactions are automatically blocked.”

On 7 March 2025, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) announced the dismantling of Garantex in partnership with German and Finnish authorities. This joint operation resulted in the seizure of Garantex’s domains in those countries.

Prosecutors filed criminal charges against Garantex’s operators, Aleksej Besciokov and Aleksandr Mira Serda, who managed the laundering activities, and authorities confiscated over $26 million of illicit funds.

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The post Ruble-Backed A7A5 Stablecoin Sees $9.4B Volume on Grinex, Garantex’s Successor appeared first on 99Bitcoins.