Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters confirmed the bank closed Hong Kong accounts tied to A7, a Kremlin-backed cross-border payments network that moved more than $6.9 billion through the global banking system between late 2024 and August 2025. The bank identified approximately $1.1 billion in A7-linked transactions, with high-volume payments from Kyrgyz banks triggering compliance alerts in February 2025. A7 allegedly used front companies, forged invoices and manipulated customs codes to disguise transactions, some of which were linked to Russian military procurement and efforts to evade Western sanctions imposed after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. First Abu Dhabi Bank processed more than $1.8 billion through 17 A7 entities before closing the accounts, while DBS, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank also had reported exposure. The case highlights vulnerabilities in correspondent banking, through which regional banks access international financial networks, and follows Standard Chartered’s $1.1 billion 2019 settlement with U.S. and U.K. authorities over earlier sanctions violations.