--- title: U.K. Sanctions Cryptomus for RU Money Laundering – Krebs... description: The United Kingdom sanctioned Cryptomus, a crypto payment platform previously known as Certa Payments, Xeltox Enterprises, and most recently Heleket, for... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/u-k-sanctions-cryptomus-for-ru-money-laundering-krebs-on-security-d85wbxjwx twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: U.K. Sanctions Cryptomus for RU Money Laundering – Krebs on Security | daily.dev og:description: The United Kingdom sanctioned Cryptomus, a crypto payment platform previously known as Certa Payments, Xeltox Enterprises, and most recently Heleket, for... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/u-k-sanctions-cryptomus-for-ru-money-laundering-krebs-on-security-d85wbxjwx og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/D85WBxjwX.png og:image:alt: U.K. Sanctions Cryptomus for RU Money Laundering – Krebs on Security og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # U.K. Sanctions Cryptomus for RU Money Laundering – Krebs on Security **[Krebs on Security](https://daily.dev/sources/krebsonsecurity)** · 4 min read · 2 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary The United Kingdom sanctioned Cryptomus, a crypto payment platform previously known as Certa Payments, Xeltox Enterprises, and most recently Heleket, for laundering money that benefits Russia's government and financial institutions amid the war in Ukraine. The sanctions, issued October 8, freeze Cryptomus assets in U.K. banks and bar British firms from doing business with it, along with related platforms VexPay, TokenSpot, and Tsunami Payments. Blockchain analysts Chainalysis and TRM Labs say Cryptomus has processed over $7 billion since 2022, tied to ransomware, darknet markets, child sexual abuse material vendors, and terrorist financing. Unlike Canada's earlier $176 million fine, which Cryptomus simply appealed while continuing operations under the Heleket name, sanctions are seen as more effective since they can actually halt payment processing. Investigators trace the platform's claimed regulatory legitimacy to a fake financial authority tied to the disputed Western Sahara region. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Why did the UK sanction Cryptomus instead of just fining it like Canada did? Sanctions can actually halt a cryptocurrency payment processor's operations, while a fine does not. Canada's CAD $176 million fine against Cryptomus in 2025 was appealed and proved unenforceable, allowing the platform to keep processing transactions and later relaunch as Heleket to continue offering no-KYC payment processing. UK sanctions issued October 8, 2026 freeze its assets and bar British companies from doing business with it. _Those tracking crypto regulation and enforcement trends can follow sanctions versus fines debates on daily.dev._ ### How much money has Cryptomus processed in illicit cryptocurrency transactions? Cryptomus processed more than $7 billion in transactions since launching in 2022, according to blockchain analysis firm TRM Labs in April 2026. This volume included transactions linked to child sexual abuse material vendors, terrorist financing networks, human trafficking operations, ransomware, and darknet markets. Its illicit counterparty count surged past 900 in a single month in late 2025, per Chainalysis. _Developers building fraud-detection or blockchain analytics tools can track cases like this on daily.dev._ ### What other names has the Cryptomus cryptocurrency platform operated under? Cryptomus previously operated as Certa Payments and Xeltox Enterprises, and most recently rebranded as Heleket after Canada fined it CAD $176 million for anti-money laundering violations. Heleket was launched as a parallel service that continued offering no-KYC payment processing even as Cryptomus's own transaction volume dropped following new KYC rules. _Anyone researching shell entities and rebrands in crypto compliance work can follow updates like this on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Russia-linked crooks bought themselves a bank for Christmas](https://daily.dev/posts/russia-linked-crooks-bought-themselves-a-bank-for-christmas-n80t0jt7n) · The Register · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [U.S. Sanctions 10 North Korean Entities for Laundering $12.7M in Crypto and IT Fraud](https://daily.dev/posts/u-s-sanctions-10-north-korean-entities-for-laundering-12-7m-in-crypto-and-it-fraud-7khowcqip) · The Hacker News · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [The U.S. sanctions Nobitex crypto exchange used by ransomware](https://daily.dev/posts/the-u-s-sanctions-nobitex-crypto-exchange-used-by-ransomware-yd2jfky4l) · BleepingComputer · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [US authorities punish sellers of malware and spyware](https://daily.dev/posts/us-authorities-punish-sellers-of-malware-and-spyware-ztmvibvsh) · CSO Online · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#crypto](https://daily.dev/tags/crypto) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/u-k-sanctions-cryptomus-for-ru-money-laundering-krebs-on-security-d85wbxjwx) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"U.K. Sanctions Cryptomus for RU Money Laundering – Krebs on Security","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/u-k-sanctions-cryptomus-for-ru-money-laundering-krebs-on-security-d85wbxjwx","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/u-k-sanctions-cryptomus-for-ru-money-laundering-krebs-on-security-d85wbxjwx"},"datePublished":"2026-10-14T14:31:51.188Z","dateModified":"2026-10-14T14:32:23.056Z","description":"The United Kingdom sanctioned Cryptomus, a crypto payment platform previously known as Certa Payments, Xeltox Enterprises, and most recently Heleket, for...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/78fcce06d41b8a1b4afca6b7637a6b44?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/78fcce06d41b8a1b4afca6b7637a6b44?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Krebs on Security","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Krebs on Security","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/deb3e417ddef4d0e8cc4d704becf6004","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/krebsonsecurity"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/u-k-sanctions-cryptomus-for-ru-money-laundering-krebs-on-security-d85wbxjwx","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":2},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"crypto","timeRequired":"PT4M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Krebs on Security","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/krebsonsecurity"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"U.K. Sanctions Cryptomus for RU Money Laundering – Krebs on Security"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/u-k-sanctions-cryptomus-for-ru-money-laundering-krebs-on-security-d85wbxjwx#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Why did the UK sanction Cryptomus instead of just fining it like Canada did?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Sanctions can actually halt a cryptocurrency payment processor's operations, while a fine does not. Canada's CAD $176 million fine against Cryptomus in 2025 was appealed and proved unenforceable, allowing the platform to keep processing transactions and later relaunch as Heleket to continue offering no-KYC payment processing. UK sanctions issued October 8, 2026 freeze its assets and bar British companies from doing business with it. Those tracking crypto regulation and enforcement trends can follow sanctions versus fines debates on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How much money has Cryptomus processed in illicit cryptocurrency transactions?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Cryptomus processed more than $7 billion in transactions since launching in 2022, according to blockchain analysis firm TRM Labs in April 2026. This volume included transactions linked to child sexual abuse material vendors, terrorist financing networks, human trafficking operations, ransomware, and darknet markets. Its illicit counterparty count surged past 900 in a single month in late 2025, per Chainalysis. Developers building fraud-detection or blockchain analytics tools can track cases like this on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What other names has the Cryptomus cryptocurrency platform operated under?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Cryptomus previously operated as Certa Payments and Xeltox Enterprises, and most recently rebranded as Heleket after Canada fined it CAD $176 million for anti-money laundering violations. Heleket was launched as a parallel service that continued offering no-KYC payment processing even as Cryptomus's own transaction volume dropped following new KYC rules. Anyone researching shell entities and rebrands in crypto compliance work can follow updates like this on daily.dev."}}]} ```