BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, August 21. The United Kingdom has expanded its sanctions list to include three individuals and five companies linked to Kyrgyzstan, Trend reports, citing the British government.
The restrictions target Kapital Bank (OJSC Kapital Bank Central Asia) and its director Kantemir Chalbaev, through which Russia is reportedly paying for military goods. The sanctions also cover cryptocurrency exchanges Grinex and Meer, as well as infrastructure supporting the new ruble crypto token A7A5, which reportedly facilitated $9.3 billion in transactions over four months. The A7A5 token was allegedly created to circumvent Western sanctions.
The full list of sanctioned entities includes Grinex LLC, CJSC Tengricoin, Old Vector LLC, Kapital Bank, Altair Holding SA, and individuals Leonid Shumakov, Kantemir Chalbayev, and Nazarbek Zhanyshbek uulu. The UK emphasized that the measures aim to block illegal financing schemes and prevent mechanisms that fund aggression against Ukraine.