Do you remember the tokens from 'Monopoly'? Nice, bright, but worth nothing.
So, Russia has turned them into a payment system.
The Financial Times describes a scheme that one would want to not be surprised by, but to record. Physical promissory notes, similar to game banknotes, have become a tool for circumventing sanctions, SWIFT, and any financial control. Behind them are not a basement or a garage, but a state bank, a runaway oligarch, and crypto.
The A7 network was launched at the end of 2024. On one side is 'Promsvyazbank', which services the defense sector. On the other is Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor, a man with a conviction for stealing $1 billion. A very logical tandem for 'financial innovations'.
The essence is simple and therefore dangerous.
In Russia, 'promissory notes' are bought for rubles. Abroad, they erase the protective layer, scan the QR code through a Telegram bot - and a courier brings cash. Dubai, Istanbul, more to come. No banks. No compliance. No questions.
For the crypto community, the key moment here is the A7A5 stablecoin. It is positioned as a 'digital ruble', backed by deposits in a state bank. According to Elliptic, over $100 billion has already passed through this token. This is not an experiment. This is infrastructure.
In October 2025, the Central Bank of Russia recognized A7A5 as a digital financial asset. That is, the state officially legalized a crypto instrument for foreign trade - just when it publicly talks about 'crypto risks'.
For large businesses, the scheme is even more sophisticated: digital debt receipts. A Russian importer buys a promissory note and hands it to a supplier, for example in China, as a payment guarantee. Money moves through Kyrgyzstan, South Africa, Southeast Asia. The banking system is bypassed. Western oversight is bypassed.
The finale is particularly telling. Despite sanctions from the US, the UK, and the EU, A7 is growing. The Russian Ministry of Finance is becoming a co-founder of 'Rosvexel'. Putin opens a video communication office. Plans include Latin America and another 20 countries.
And around the same time, we are told that crypto is a 'gray zone', a 'risk', 'anonymity'.
The issue is not technology. The question is who and why is using it. And who pretends not to see the difference.