Key Takeaways:
- EU names HTX in 21st sanctions package for frustrating Russia measures
- Transaction ban starts Aug. 23; no asset freeze imposed on the exchange
- UK sanctioned HTX in May over alleged $1.5 billion Kremlin channel
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EU sanctions Justin Sun's HTX in 21st Russia sanctions package
The European Union added HTX, the crypto exchange tied to Tron founder Justin Sun, to its 21st Russia sanctions package Thursday, accusing the platform of frustrating measures designed to restrict Moscow's access to the global financial system.
"We're hitting over a hundred banks and crypto operators," Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, said in a statement. "With each round of sanctions, we squeeze Russia's economy and its capacity to prolong its illegal war."
The package, the bloc's largest batch of individual listings in four years at 218 designations, bars EU residents and entities from transacting with HTX from Aug. 23. The exchange appears under its operator, Huobi Global SA, on an annex of crypto and financial firms the EU said had "significantly frustrating" its Russia measures. The action stops short of a full asset freeze. The EU also extended its transaction ban to 13 other crypto-related service platforms based in Georgia, Panama, the UAE, the Marshall Islands, Kyrgyzstan and Belarus.
The EU listing follows a UK sanction in May that marked the first time Britain applied the measure to a crypto exchange of HTX's scale, flagging it as suspected of channeling more than $1.5 billion to the Kremlin. Blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs said this week that HTX had "rebuilt its on-chain plumbing" since the UK action, cycling hot wallets across TRON, Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain and Solana fast enough that address screening "cannot keep pace." The dual-jurisdiction pressure raises the compliance burden for counterparties and may push regulated financial firms to sever ties with the exchange.
HTX, formerly Huobi and founded in China in 2013, reported more than $3 trillion in trading volume in 2025, making it one of the largest global platforms. Justin Sun, the Hong Kong-based billionaire who acquired a controlling interest in 2022, has been a prominent figure in the crypto industry, including a now-deteriorated relationship with World Liberty Financial, the crypto venture co-founded by US President Donald Trump.
The EU action does not freeze HTX's assets, but the transaction ban creates legal risk for European banks, payment providers and custodians that maintain relationships with the exchange. Some counterparties may restrict access preemptively. The bloc also raised the possibility of imposing a full ban on a third country's crypto services for the first time, framing it as a deterrent to jurisdictions that host platforms helping Moscow evade restrictions. HTX did not respond to a request for comment.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
