17-Year-Old British Researcher Banned From Russia After Exposing Crypto Sanctions Evasion Network

Russia's Foreign Ministry announced a new round of retaliatory entry bans on Tuesday, targeting five British citizens including 17-year-old Alexander Browder, investigative journalists Catherine Belton and Richard Holmes, and others. Browder, who learned of his ban while in economics class, believes he was targeted for a report he wrote for the Henry Jackson Society detailing Russia's use of the A7 cryptocurrency network to evade Western sanctions imposed after the invasion of Ukraine. The A7 network allegedly channels funds through Kyrgyzstan's financial system, with a ruble-pegged stablecoin called A7A5 — launched by Russian state defense lender Promsvyazbank and fugitive Moldovan banker Ilan Shor — reportedly facilitating over $100 billion in cross-border transactions by early 2026. Browder's research contributed to a UK sanctions package announced in May targeting the network, and prompted 26 senior MPs and Lords to write to the Foreign Secretary urging further action against enablers within Kyrgyzstan. Russia has dismissed the report as disinformation. Browder described the ban as a badge of honor and noted the difficulty of regulating crypto due to its speed and cross-border nature, likening the challenge to fighting the mythological hydra. He expressed cautious optimism that political changes in Hungary and the EU's 20th sanctions package may help close loopholes that have allowed the scheme to persist.