By Angus Berwick
The British government sanctioned crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun's global crypto exchange HTX on suspicion of supporting the Russian government, placing a spotlight on a billionaire who until recently was a key backer of the Trump family's cryptocurrency businesses.
The U.K. Foreign Office said HTX provided financial services to two businesses strategically significant to authorities in Russia: a Kremlin-backed crypto network called A7, and a Moscow-based crypto exchange named Garantex. Both have been previously sanctioned by U.S. authorities.
The measure was part of a broader crackdown on Russian illicit-finance networks that the U.K. government said were used as payment routes to fuel Russian President's Vladimir Putin's war effort against Ukraine. "If the Kremlin thinks it can evade our sanctions by hiding behind crypto networks and shadow financial systems, it is gravely mistaken," Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said.
HTX said it would work with U.K. authorities to understand the basis for the action and to promptly address any concerns, adding it was "committed to full compliance with all applicable laws."
Founded in China, HTX, previously known as Huobi, is one of the world's largest crypto trading platforms, processing over $3 trillion in crypto transactions last year. Sun, Chinese-born and based in Hong Kong, owns the exchange and serves on its advisory board.
Sun became the largest buyer of President Trump's $TRUMP memecoin last year, scoring an invitation to a private VIP reception with Trump at his golf club outside Washington.
And until a public falling-out this year, Sun was a financial supporter of World Liberty Financial, the Trump family's flagship crypto venture, spending $75 million on the company's own token. HTX was the first major trading platform to offer World Liberty's stablecoin, USD1, to clients, giving the currency a boost shortly after its launch in April 2025.
World Liberty named Sun as an adviser in late 2024. "With President Trump's leadership, I'm excited to help make crypto great again in the U.S.," Sun posted on social media at the time. Zach Witkoff, World Liberty's CEO, called Sun "a legend" on stage with him at a conference in Dubai last year.
Sun filed a lawsuit in April against World Liberty, accusing the venture of "criminal extortion" for freezing his tokens over his refusal to invest more money with the company. World Liberty said Sun was seeking to deflect attention from his own misconduct, and later filed its own lawsuit against Sun. Both suits are pending.
A World Liberty spokesman said Tuesday the company "has held compliance as its highest priority and we meet or exceed industry standard protocols for due diligence on all relevant counterparties."
Write to Angus Berwick at angus.berwick@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 26, 2026 18:41 ET (22:41 GMT)
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