Moldovan businessman Ilan Shor, convicted of embezzling a billion dollars, has become the architect of one of the most ambitious cryptocurrency schemes of our time. The A7A5 stablecoin he created, pegged to the Russian ruble, has turned into a key financial tool for Russian companies, oligarchs, and state corporations, allowing them to bypass Western sanctions and their disconnection from SWIFT. By my estimates, more than $100 billion has already flowed through the A7 payment network.
From banking scandal to Kremlin heights
Shor's story is a journey from one of the largest bank heists in Moldova's history to the role of a gray cardinal in the financial corridors of the Kremlin. In 2014, he siphoned $1 billion out of three Moldovan banks, nearly collapsing the country's financial system. Sentenced to 15 years in prison, he fled to Moscow, where he settled in an upscale suburb next door to Dmitry Peskov.
Instead of lying low, Shor launched operations on an international scale. He built a cryptocurrency system that allows sanctioned banks to conduct international settlements bypassing SWIFT. Tellingly, the same technologies now being used against the West—blockchain and artificial intelligence—were supposed to ensure transparency.
Anatomy of the ruble stablecoin
Initially, Shor bet on Tether, but quickly realized its vulnerability: USDT is backed by dollar-denominated assets and could theoretically be frozen by Western regulators. That is when A7A5 appeared in January 2025—the first stablecoin pegged to the ruble, making it immune to dollar-based restrictions.
The mechanics are elegant in their simplicity. Users in Russia hold funds in A7A5 until the moment of transfer, then convert them into USDT and send them instantly. The funds remain vulnerable for only a few seconds at the moment of conversion. In essence, it is a channel between the ruble and the rest of the crypto ecosystem, running on Tether's blockchain but anchored to the ruble.
Specific structures stand behind the token's issuance. Shor controls 51% of A7, while the remaining stake belongs to Promsvyazbank, which has been tasked with supporting the defense sector. The financing is led by economist Petr Fradkov—the son of a former prime minister and intelligence chief, whose brother is a deputy defense minister.
Rise, clients, and global expansion
The scale is impressive. By May, A7A5 was facilitating $8.5 billion in monthly operations, despite a hacker attack on the main Grinex platform in April 2026. The user base turned out to be broad: Turkey paid for Russian gas in cryptocurrency, drone manufacturers purchased components in China, and several of Russia's wealthiest individuals are said to be among the clients.
Shor's business is actively expanding beyond the post-Soviet space. Last year, A7 opened offices in Nigeria and Zimbabwe, with plans for further expansion into Africa and South America. Kyrgyzstan has become a key intermediary, and Shor himself even provided a private jet to President Sadyr Japarov, who is contesting sanctions against local banks.
Risks and global implications
However, in recent months, the project's position has wavered. Users are increasingly worried about funds being frozen at the moment of conversion into USDT, which has led to a sharp drop in trading volumes. Wealthy Russians may abandon the use of this currency.
But the main danger, in my view, is not the fate of a specific token. A7A5 has offered a working model for anyone who wants to build a financial system without Western oversight. Sanctioned regimes in Iran, China, Cuba, or North Korea could very well want to issue a similar currency. The striking success of a scheme that allowed a sanctioned state to trade with the entire world could have consequences far beyond the conflict with Ukraine.
My analysis: A7A5 is not just a stablecoin, but a precedent demonstrating that blockchain can be used as a tool of geopolitical confrontation. Creating a "free financial zone" for states dissatisfied with the Western order is a challenge that will require regulators to adopt fundamentally new approaches to controlling cryptocurrency flows.