NFT Sale Linked to Sanctioned Russian Terrorist Group Attempts to Support War in Ukraine

The risk that cryptocurrencies could facilitate sanctions evasion has been the subject of numerous actions by U.S. government agencies since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. A Kharon investigation has found that a supporter of a sanctioned Russian terrorist group listed a non-fungible token (NFT) for sale on OpenSea, the largest U.S.-based NFT marketplace, attempting to raise cryptocurrency to support Russian fighters in Ukraine.

The Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) is a Russian white supremacist group that the U.S. designated, along with its leaders, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs) in 2020. In June of this year, the U.S. sanctioned two RIM supporters and designated an affiliated Swedish national as an SDGT. One of the sanctioned RIM supporters is Alexander Zhuchkovsky, who has since 2014 used his account on the Russian social media platform Vkontakte (VK) to raise funds “to purchase weapons and military equipment for RIM and…