Feds Charge Crypto Founder With Evading U.S. Sanctions, Laundering $500M

The Federal Prosecutors have accused the founder of the CRIPTO company in New York for washing more than $ 500 million through the US financial system while helping with sanctioned Russian banks to bypass international limitations.

Iurii Gugnin (38), Russian citizen and founder Crypto Paty Company Evita Investments Inc. And Evita Pay Inc., was arrested on Monday on an indictment for 22 acts claiming that he had turned his business into what the prosecutors called “a masked pipeline for dirty money.”

Guglin facilitated transactions with sanctioned Russian banks, including Sberbank, VTB Bank and Tinkoff Bank between June 2023 and January 2025, the Ministry of Justice reports a statement.

His operations allegedly helped Russian customers acquire sensitive US technology and nuclear materials while avoiding international sanctions.

The accused faces serious sentences, with each banks fraud to be a maximum of 30-year prison sentence and additional charges punished up to 20 years in prison.

“How to know if there is an investigation against you”

The case indicates increasing concerns among national security officers on how the crypto infrastructure weapons armed the weapons to undermine the sanctions intended to secrete the Russian war economy in Ukraine.

Gugnin is accused of moving around $ 530 million through US Bank and Krypto Stock Exchange, primarily using Stabblecoin Pendant (USDT).

The indictment is claimed to have repeatedly cheated on financial institutions, falsely claiming that Evita “did not do business with entities in Russia and did not deal with sanctioned entities.”

However, prosecutors say he held personal accounts in the sanctioned Russian banks of JSC Alfa-Bank and Sberbank while staying in the United States.

The scheme allegedly included foreign customers who sent Gugnin Crypto, who then washed through wallets and accounts on US banks, turning into dollars and payments through Manhattan bank on their behalf.

Prosecutors say Gugnin made it easier to pay for US servers under the supervision of exports and laundry for Rosat, a Russian nuclear nuclear company, reportedly “ejected” Russian details about customers about invoices to cover up activities.

Court documents reveal that he has performed internet tests for the conditions, including “how to know if there is an investigation against you,” “Penals for money laundering” and “penalties for sanctions of violation of the EU luxury goods,” the public said.

Cryptocurrencies and sanctions

The Gugnin case represents the latest in a large series of American actions that are aimed at Russian cryptocurrencies that have processed billions in illegal transactions.

“Since an invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the international community has arranged a wide range of financial sanctions against Russia, seriously limiting its approach to the traditional financial system,” said Chengyi OG, head of politics, APAC -AU CHINLYSIS, said, said Decipher. “As an alternative payment channel, the Crypto currency is used – and will probably continue to serve – as a tool to connect the sanctions.”

Sanctioned jurisdiction received $ 15.8 billion in the 2024 cryptocurrencieswhich makes up about 39% of all illegal crypto transactions globally, according to a report from Blockchain Analytics Chainlysis in February.

Ong noted that the Russian legalization of cryptocurrencies for international payments 2023 was reflected in this shift, although traditional tactics of delay like Shell companies remain common.

And for her, Blockchain’s inherent transparency gives a crucial advantage in the fight against such schemes.

“Enhanced compliance programs supported by Blockchain’s analysis has contributed to the measurable decline in exchange interactions with sanctioned entities, showing the efficiency of strategies to remove risk -focused risk,” said ONG.

Recent implementation actions have extinguished more crypto platforms associated with Russian, including 47 exchanges of No-Kyc in Russian Seized the German police in the “Operal Final Exchange” and Russion Cryptexwhich has been processing more than $ 5.88 billion since 2018.

In March International Agency seized the sanctioned Russian exchange of guaranxwho operated over $ 100 billion transactions and made up 82% of all the boundes of volumes associated with the sanctioned entities at its peak shows the chains data.

Blockchain Intelligence Company TRM Labs recently concluded that the new exchange has been exchanged GRINEX is probably a rebrand garantexwith a new platform on the ship of former Garantex users and the redistribution of its property through Stabilcoin A7A5.

“There is a broader question here that Rebranding became a well -known tactic for sanctioned crypto subjects,” said Andrew Fierman, head of national security intelligence in Chainlysis and then said Decipher.