Elliptic noted that before sanctions and exchange limitations slowed its growth, the ruble-backed A7A5 coin acted as a bridge into USDT markets.
According to new research from blockchain analytics company Elliptic, a stablecoin backed by the currency and linked to Russian financial networks that are under sanctions handled more than $100 billion in on-chain transactions in less than a year.
Elliptic claimed in a report released on Thursday that the A7A5 stablecoin was made to work within a larger system that aims to protect against Western financial sanctions. The framework let corporations with ties to Russia shift money through crypto marketplaces while lowering the danger of having their assets frozen.
Rapid growth followed by enforcement pressure
Elliptic discovered that A7A5’s activity picked up when it was released in early 2025, but it slowed down in the second half of the year as exchanges and token issuers began to impose sanctions and compliance measures that limited its use.
Elliptic argued that the size and nature of the flows show how non-US $ stablecoins may be made to enable commerce that is against the law and how enforcement action can still break these systems.
Elliptic noted that the $100 billion number is the total value of all A7A5 transfers that have been recorded on public blockchains like Ethereum and Tron.
Each transaction is not a separate economic activity, but the fact that transaction fees have been paid for all A7A5 transfers suggests that they all benefit the person who made the transaction.
Source: Elliptic
A7A5 as a bridge into USDT liquidity
Elliptic’s research suggests that A7A5 has mostly been used as a bridge between rubles and Tether’s USDt, which is still the biggest dollar-pegged stablecoin in the world.
The business added that the structure helped users move value into USDT markets without having to keep wallets open for long periods of time, which could be frozen by Western authorities.
The investigation said that the stablecoin’s trading activity had mostly taken place on a small number of exchanges, such as those based in Kyrgyzstan and those affiliated to the project. This makes it clear that the token is a purpose-built settlement mechanism and not a widely used retail stablecoin.
Sanctions, liquidity loss, and platform restrictions
Elliptic noted that the stablecoin’s growth slowed down in the middle of 2025. Since July, there have been no big issuances, and transaction volumes have dropped from highs of $1.5 billion to roughly $500 million.
Robinson remarked, “The US sanctions in August 2025 seem to have had the biggest effect.” “Right after the US designations, USDT liquidity provision to A7A5’s DEX dropped a lot, taking away one of the stablecoin’s main benefits: easy on-chain access to USDT.”
As exchanges took action, further restrictions came into play. In November 2025, Uniswap, a decentralised exchange (DEX), added A7A5 on its token blocklist, which stopped trade through its web interface.
Elliptic also pointed to allegations from consumers whose USDT deposits were halted by exchanges after they were tracked back to wallets associated to A7A5.
Regulatory Response and Structural Limits
The European Union officially banned A7A5 on October 23, calling it a way to get around financial constraints that come with Russia’s military economy.
Robinson noted that A7A5’s path shows both the possibilities and the restrictions of stablecoins that aren’t tied to the dollar and are made for finance during sanctions.
The US dollar is the most important currency in the world, but there are structural limits to how far a stablecoin like this can grow. But if that changes, all bets are off.