Russia has devised a new way to exploit African countries - actively using the continent as a testing ground for building an alternative financial system based on cryptocurrencies. As of April 2026, this has become a key tool for bypassing international sanctions and conducting transactions outside SWIFT.

The A7 platform is linked to Ilan Shor - a fugitive convicted in Moldova for his role in the $1 billion banking fraud - and to Russia’s state-owned Promsvyazbank (PSB), which services the country’s defense sector. Shor is a fraudster: in 2014-2015, around $1 billion - roughly 12% of Moldova’s GDP - disappeared from three Moldovan banks, and he was sentenced to 15 years in prison. It appears that Russia sees his "skills" as useful for extracting money from citizens of African countries.

The A7 crypto payment network:

▪️ A project controlled by the sanctioned Russian Promsvyazbank. Offices have already been opened in Nigeria, with plans to launch a branch in Zimbabwe and active recruitment underway in Togo.

▪️ Instruments.
Transactions are conducted using ruble-pegged stablecoins and digital debt instruments.

▪️ Commodities for crypto.
Cryptocurrencies are used to pay for exports of Russian goods and imports of African raw materials (gold, uranium, diamonds). This allows Russian companies to repatriate revenue without attracting the attention of Western regulators.

▪️ Sanctions evasion.
In 2025, the volume of crypto transactions used to bypass sanctions (including by Russia, Iran, and North Korea) increased by 700%, exceeding $100 billion.

Russia talks about "Russia-Africa partnership," but in reality behaves like a predator.

▪️ People.
Exploitation of human resources. Russia is using Africa as a reservoir of cheap and vulnerable labor.

This is a large-scale scheme.
According to Ukrainian data, more than 1,780 Africans are fighting in the Russian army. Reuters has reported separately on over 1,000 recruited Kenyans. South Africa officially confirmed 17 of its citizens involved in the scheme, with 11 expected to return home, while Cameroon has already confirmed 16 fatalities.

Russia is also bringing in cheap labor from African countries for its defense sector. An AP investigation found that around 200 young women from Africa, aged 18-22, were brought to the Alabuga special economic zone in Tatarstan. They were recruited through advertisements for "education" and "jobs," but ended up assembling strike drones used against Ukraine.

▪️ Gold and minerals.
Russia supplies weapons and "regime security" to African governments in exchange for deposits, concessions, and long-term mineral contracts.

OFAC has reported that Wagner-linked entities profited from illegal resource extraction in the Central African Republic. The company Midas had access to the Ndassima gold mine, with reserves exceeding $1 billion, and, together with Wagner, prevented CAR government officials from inspecting the site.

▪️ Control over financial flows.
Russia is seeking not only control over mining, but also over processing and export hubs.

Reuters reported that Mali has begun construction of a Russian-backed gold refinery with a capacity of 200 tons per year, in partnership with Russia’s Yadran Group. This suggests that Moscow aims to control not just extraction, but also refining, accounting, logistics, and sales.

Russia claims it is "helping Africa." In reality, it is building a system of extraction and exploitation.