TechFlow News, April 20: According to DL News, Russian cryptocurrency exchange Grinex announced last Wednesday that it would cease operations after suffering a cyberattack that resulted in the theft of over 1 billion rubles—approximately $13 million.
The report states that Grinex processed nearly $100 billion in transaction volume for the sanctioned stablecoin A7A5 in 2025. Its shutdown is expected to weaken Russian companies’ ability to convert rubles into usable international currencies and deliver a severe blow to Russia’s shadow financial system designed to circumvent sanctions. Grinex was widely viewed as the successor to Garantex, which had previously been sanctioned and shut down. Both Grinex and A7A5’s issuer, Old Vector, were sanctioned in August 2025 by the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom.
