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Kremlin-Backed Network Used SWIFT Access to Move Billions Despite Sanctions
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International banks including Standard Chartered, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, and others processed billions of dollars linked to A7, a Kremlin-backed financial group that allegedly used front companies and forged documents to move Russian funds through the global banking system despite sanctions, the Financial Times reported.
An investigation based on hundreds of thousands of internal A7 files found that more than $6.9 billion was routed through the international financial system. Some of the transactions were reportedly connected to highly sensitive war-related purchases, including military equipment and goods procured by Russian security services.
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A7 was established in Russia and Kyrgyzstan in late 2024 by Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor with support from Promsvyazbank, a Russian state-owned bank closely linked to the defense industry. The Kremlin has promoted A7 as an alternative mechanism for facilitating cross-border payments after major Russian banks were cut off from the SWIFT financial messaging system following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Despite presenting itself as an alternative to Western financial infrastructure, A7 relied on a network of front companies and existing businesses with access to SWIFT, according to the Financial Times. The group allegedly concealed the role of these intermediaries through a large-scale document forgery operation that produced counterfeit invoices.
The leaked records indicate that accounts at Standard Chartered in Hong Kong received $1.1 billion from A7-linked entities between late 2024 and August 2025. During the same period, $273 million was transferred to DBS in Hong Kong, while Citigroup clients received $74 million and Deutsche Bank clients in Europe received approximately $18 million.
A7 also opened accounts at First Abu Dhabi Bank, the United Arab Emirates’ largest bank, for 17 separate entities that subsequently made more than $1.8 billion in outbound payments. The group also established accounts at JPMorgan Chase and DBS, according to the report.
The outlet identified evidence of 100 A7 front companies making payments during the period covered by the leaked documents, while the records referenced at least another 100 entities. These included at least 61 in the United Arab Emirates, 87 in Hong Kong, 16 in Kyrgyzstan, and 14 in Indonesia.
Most of the largest entities were shell companies controlled by A7, according to the investigation. However, the largest single payer was the now-defunct Trading Company of the Kyrgyz Republic, a Kyrgyz state entity.
At least three entities linked to the network were based in the United Kingdom, which imposed sanctions on A7 in May 2025. Another entity in Hungary appears to have served as a key channel for payments entering the European Union, the Financial Times reported.
Under the system described in the leaked records, front companies arranged for funds to be deposited at banks connected to SWIFT, allowing them to settle overseas invoices on behalf of Russian companies. Chinese bank accounts ultimately received just over half of the financial flows examined by the Financial Times.
It also confirmed that all A7-linked accounts had already been detected and closed, adding that it seeks to comply with US, UK, EU, and UN sanctions.
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The findings follow earlier reports of A7 expanding its operations beyond Russia. In April, the Financial Times reported that the network was increasing its presence across Africa as part of efforts to circumvent Western financial restrictions.
Founded in 2024 by fugitive Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor and defense-linked Promsvyazbank, both of which are subject to Western sanctions, A7 has increasingly been used as a mechanism for facilitating Russian cross-border transactions.
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