Japan officially imposed asset freeze sanctions on crypto exchange Garantex on October 2, 2026. Tokyo’s decision adds to a series of global actions aimed at clamping down on an entity indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for processing $96 billion in crypto transactions since April 2019. The Japanese government enacted the blocking measures under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act, targeting 33 entities and nine individuals linked to the Russia-Ukraine war.
Garantex, which holds the registration Garantex Europe OU, operates out of St. Petersburg and the Federation East Tower in Moscow. Under the Japanese cabinet’s new regulations, all payments and capital transactions involving entities on the sanctions list now require special permission. This clampdown extends beyond the crypto sector, with the same rules imposing export bans on four entities and cutting off services to 35 shadow fleet vessels transporting Russian oil.
Mounting Pressure from the West
Japan’s blockade further tightens the web of sanctions surrounding Garantex. The United States, through the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), was the first to take aggressive action in April 2022, followed by additional measures in August 2025. The European Union followed suit by issuing a similar operational ban in February 2025.
Physical enforcement peaked in March 2025 when U.S. authorities seized three of Garantex’s primary domains, while German and Finnish law enforcement took control of its operational servers. Around the same time, stablecoin issuer Tether froze assets worth over 2.5 billion rubles in USDT. The legal crackdown soon spread to other actors. Just a day before Japan’s announcement, the United States designated the A7 network as a transnational criminal organization on October 1, 2026. The U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) noted that A7 sub-agents orchestrated the movement of more than $17 billion between January 2025 and June 2026.
Migration to a New Platform
The server seizures, however, did not completely shut down the Russian exchange. Following the sweeping raids in March, Garantex reportedly shifted its customer base immediately to a new platform called Grinex.
Blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs noted that sanctions from multiple nations may fail to halt the flow of funds. Their report concluded that an entity of Garantex’s scale had prepared contingency plans long before law enforcement stepped in. For the operators of this network, server seizures and domain takedowns are not the end of business, but rather operational hurdles for which workarounds were already in place.
Reported by crypto.news.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only, not financial advice. Cryptocurrency assets are highly volatile and carry significant risk. Always do your own research (DYOR) and never invest more than you can afford to lose.
