Bangladesh, Sept. 11 -- When the US Treasury blacklisted Moscow-based cryptocurrency exchange Garantex in 2022, Western officials touted the move as a major step in choking off Russias access to the global financial system. Estonian regulators soon revoked its license, and law enforcement agencies conducted raids on its servers and websites. But far from disappearing, Garantex mutated. Today, investigators describe it as a shape-shifting network of successor platforms and offshore entities that continues to funnel billions of dollars across borders, evading sanctions and enabling sensitive trade.

A new investigation by Transparency International Russia in Exile and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) reveals how ...