UK's NCA and US Treasury's OFAC Take Action Against Key Players in Russian Global Money Laundering Network

Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against five individuals and four entities tied to the TGR Group, a global money laundering operation following a multi-year investigation by the UK’s NCA. This network facilitated sanctions evasion for Russian elites, transnational criminal organizations, and state-sponsored activities such as espionage.

The TGR Group, led by Ukrainian national George Rossi and Russian national Elena Chirkinyan, provided services that included converting illicit funds into cryptocurrency, enabling property purchases in Western countries, and bypassing financial restrictions. 

Rossi and Chirkinyan also collaborated with Ekaterina Zhdanova, the head of the Moscow-based Smart Group, sanctioned earlier this year for her involvement in laundering ransomware payments and moving funds for Russian elites. TRM did a deep dive at the time of those sanctions here.

Specifically, Zhdanova orchestrated international transfers using fiat and cryptocurrency, leveraging connections with traditional businesses and a vast network of associates. At the time of her November 2023 designation, OFAC highlighted her involvement in assisting a Russian oligarch with transferring over $100 million abroad through cryptocurrency, operating a Dubai-based tax residency service to provide Russian clients with identity documents and bank accounts, and laundering $2.3 million through fraudulent investments and real estate purchases. 

Zhdanova frequently used non-compliant Russian-based cryptocurrency exchange Garantex to launder funds and facilitated transactions for the Ryuk ransomware group, laundering $2.3 million in suspected victim payments in 2021 and connecting with other ransomware networks. According to TRM, Bitzlato, which was the target of a U.S. Department of Justice and Treasury actions in January 2023, also received funds from a wallet controlled by Zdhanova.

Khadzi-Murat Dalgatovich Magomedov, a Russian nation, was also included in today’s designation for his role in coordinating the facilitation of bulk cash and cryptocurrency money laundering with Zhdanova.

The NCA’s investigation uncovered extensive operations linking TGR and Smart to organized crime, drugs, and cybercriminal activities across more than 30 countries.

“Through the TGR Group, Russian elites sought to exploit digital assets—in particular U.S. dollar-backed stablecoins—to evade U.S. and international sanctions, further enriching themselves and the Kremlin,” said Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley T. Smith, “The United States, alongside our allies and partners, remains committed to disrupting any effort by Russia to use digital assets or other illicit financial schemes to accrue, store, and transfer their ill-gotten gains."

The NCA’s Breakthrough in Operation Destabilise

The NCA initiated the unraveling of the network through Operation Destabilise, which targeted Russian-speaking money laundering networks embedded in global criminal enterprises. NCA-coordinated activity has so far led to 84 arrests, with many already serving prison sentences, as well as the seizure of over £20m in cash and cryptocurrency.

The investigation revealed that Smart and TGR worked as financial enablers for organized crime groups such as the Kinahan cartel and UK-based drug gangs. By laundering illicit drug profits through cryptocurrency, the network allowed criminal organizations to reinvest in narcotics and firearms without needing to move physical cash across borders.

A significant breakthrough, according to the BBC, came during the 2021 pandemic lockdown when police intercepted couriers transporting bulk cash for laundering. The NCA traced these funds to TGR and Smart, which converted the cash into cryptocurrency using unregistered exchanges. For instance, one courier network collected drug money from 55 UK locations on behalf of 22 criminal groups over just four months. Couriers like Fawad Saiedi, who moved £15.6 million in drug money, were key links in this scheme. Saiedi, arrested in 2021, was sentenced to over four years in prison, marking the start of a deeper investigation.

The NCA’s analysis revealed that the laundering networks not only supported organized crime but also facilitated Russian state operations. Smart and TGR helped finance espionage activities, including transferring funds for Russia Today (RT) media operations, banned in the UK, and laundering ransomware payments for cybercriminal groups like Ryuk, which extorted £27 million from UK victims.

How the Network Operated and Sanction Implications

The TGR and Smart networks provided seamless cross-border financial services, mimicking legitimate banking systems. Their methods included the laundering of funds associated with sanctioned entities; providing an unregistered service to exchange cash and cryptocurrency; the receipt of cash and making the value available to clients in the form of cryptocurrency; providing a pre-paid credit card service; and, obfuscating the source of funds to allow high-net worth Russian nationals to purchase property in the United Kingdom.

Sanctioned entities include:

• TGR Corporate Concierge LTD (UK): Directed by Chirkinyan, providing financial and concierge services.
• TGR DWC-LLC (UAE): Managed by Chirkinyan for facilitating property transactions.
• Pullman Global Solutions LLC (Wyoming): Owned by Andrejs Bradens, processing cryptocurrency exchanges.
• Siam Expert Trading Company (Thailand): Exported electronic components to Russia.

These entities, along with Rossi, Chirkinyan, and Zhdanova, are now subject to OFAC sanctions. All their assets within U.S. and UK jurisdictions are frozen, and transactions with these parties are prohibited. The NCA has seized over £20 million in cash and cryptocurrency as part of its efforts, estimated to be tied to £700 million in drug sales.

A Coordinated Global Effort

The NCA’s significant actions and OFAC’s designations are part of a broader strategy to disrupt global money laundering operations. The sanctions aim to sever the financial lifelines of criminal groups and state actors leveraging digital assets to evade international controls. Rob Jones, Director General of the NCA, stated, “Operation Destabilise has exposed billion-dollar money laundering networks operating in a way previously unknown to international law enforcement. We’ve removed the air of legitimacy enabling them to weave illicit funds into our economy.”

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