Federal prosecutors have unveiled charges against Iurii Gugnin, the founder of a U.S.-based cryptocurrency payments company, accusing him of running an elaborate international money laundering network that funneled over $530 million to and from Russian financial institutions under U.S. sanctions.
According to court filings unsealed this week, Gugnin—along with unnamed co-conspirators—allegedly operated a shadow financial pipeline that allowed sanctioned Russian banks and entities to bypass international restrictions by exploiting cryptocurrency’s perceived anonymity and weak oversight. Prosecutors say Gugnin’s company, though registered in the United States, served as a front for moving funds linked to institutions blacklisted due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and ongoing global sanctions.
Investigators say Gugnin used a combination of shell companies, fake documentation, and blockchain-based transactions to obscure the source and destination of funds. His platform allegedly converted fiat currency into cryptocurrency, routed it through mixers and privacy coins, then back into fiat—making the trail extremely difficult to trace.
Authorities claim the laundering scheme primarily benefited major Russian banks that have been cut off from the global financial system. By moving money through crypto rails, Gugnin’s network helped these institutions access U.S. dollars and other hard currencies they otherwise could not obtain legally.
In one example cited in the indictment, a Russian energy firm under sanctions allegedly used Gugnin’s services to settle multimillion-dollar contracts with foreign suppliers, disguising the flow of funds using a complex web of intermediaries and offshore wallets.
The case underscores growing concerns among U.S. officials that crypto infrastructure is increasingly being used to sidestep economic sanctions. The Treasury Department has warned that state actors, including Russia and North Korea, are experimenting with digital assets to fund prohibited activity, from weapons development to illicit trade.
“This was not a case of a few shady transactions,” said a senior DOJ official during a press conference. “This was a concerted, calculated campaign to undermine the global financial sanctions regime and profit from it.”
Gugnin was arrested earlier this week and is currently in federal custody awaiting arraignment. Prosecutors are pursuing charges including conspiracy to commit money laundering, operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, and sanctions evasion. If convicted, he faces decades in prison.
The Department of Justice said the investigation is ongoing and that additional indictments may follow as authorities continue to unravel the broader network of entities and individuals involved.
This case marks one of the most high-profile crypto-related sanctions evasion schemes ever prosecuted in the U.S.—and sends a clear warning to companies that enable illicit finance under the guise of technological innovation.
