Russia has imposed sanctions on 17-year-old British national Alexander Browder after he authored a report alleging that the ruble-pegged A7A5 stablecoin is used to evade sanctions and fund the war in Ukraine.
Browder, the son of Putin critic Bill Browder, wrote the report for the Henry Jackson Society think tank. It recommends that Western countries apply pressure on exchanges handling the A7A5 stablecoin, which was designed to bypass sanctions imposed after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The Russian Foreign Ministry described the allegations as 'defamatory speculations and false information.' Browder was sanctioned alongside three other U.K. nationals and Washington Post reporter Catherine Belton. In a post on X on Wednesday, Browder called the sanctions 'a badge of honour.' The move follows his research into Russia's alleged use of cryptocurrency to circumvent restrictions.