Iurii Gugnin, the founder of a US-based cryptocurrency payments firm, has been charged with operating a sophisticated international money laundering scheme that moved over half a billion dollars on behalf of sanctioned Russian banks and entities. Prosecutors allege that Gugnin used stablecoin transactions and falsified documents to mask funds, including routing payments through tether, a widely used dollar-pegged stablecoin.
Gugnin faces 22 counts of wire and bank fraud, violating US sanctions and export controls, money laundering, and failing to implement anti-money laundering protocols. The charges accuse him of turning his company into a covert pipeline for dirty money, moving funds to aid sanctioned Russian banks and help Russian clients acquire sensitive US technology.
The scheme allegedly involved processing over $530 million in payments while concealing the origins and purposes of the funds. Clients included individuals and businesses linked to sanctioned Russian institutions such as Sberbank, VTB Bank, and Rosatom.
Gugnin maintained ties to Russian intelligence and officials in Iran, making it difficult for investigators to extradite him from the US. He is accused of helping the export of sensitive US technology to Russian clients and faces a statutory maximum sentence of up to 30 years in prison if convicted on bank fraud charges.
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/09/crypto-russia-laundering.html