The United Kingdom has added three companies registered in Georgia to its sanctions list, accusing them of involvement in Russia-focused cryptocurrency exchange activity designed to help bypass sanctions. The move was announced by British authorities on May 26 as part of a wider effort to target illicit finance channels and digital asset networks allegedly used by Russia to evade UK restrictions. The companies named in the sanctions package are Arvix LLC, Rapira Group LLC, and Aifory LLC. None of the three firms, nor their listed owners, are prominent figures in Georgia’s public or business space.

Georgian authorities have also sought to distance the country’s financial system from the companies’ alleged activity. The National Bank of Georgia said that the firms were not operating under its supervision, while the Investigation Service of the Finance Ministry stated that a criminal investigation was already underway and had produced specific legal outcomes. According to the agency, the companies’ actual operations were not conducted from Georgia.

Public registry records show that Aifory LLC was incorporated in Tbilisi on June 22, 2023. Its original owner was listed as Giorgi Nutsubidze, while later registry information from 2024 names Mikheil Gevorkiani as the company’s owner. Arvix LLC was registered several months later, on October 26, 2023. Davit Nutsubidze appears in registry documents as the company’s director, while Tamaz Garaev is reportedly listed as the current owner. Little additional public information is available about the individuals connected to the firm. Rapira Group LLC was established on November 9, 2022, with Ilias Ahaevi named as its director. According to the most recent registry data from May 2026, the company is now in the process of liquidation.

Georgia’s regulatory framework requires all individuals and entities engaged in crypto-related services to register with the National Bank of Georgia as Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). Such businesses are also required to comply with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing rules. At present, 39 entities are officially registered as VASPs in Georgia.

Following the UK announcement, the National Bank said that the three sanctioned companies had not been operating within its regulatory perimeter. The bank stated that after learning in September 2025 that the firms may have been conducting activity without the necessary registration, it passed the relevant information to law enforcement bodies and took supervisory steps within its mandate.

On May 27, the Investigation Service of the Ministry of Finance provided further details, saying that its inquiry found that Aifory LLC and Arvix LLC had been formally registered in the names of other individuals in return for payment. In reality, the agency said, the businesses were operating from Moscow, Russia, and had no offices, assets, or genuine operational presence in Georgia. According to the Investigation Service, an April 28, 2026 court ruling resulted in three defendants being fined 30,000 GEL, equivalent to around 11,000 USD, and receiving suspended sentences. A fourth individual, Davit Jincharadze, described by investigators as the organizer of the criminal scheme, was sentenced to nine years and six months in prison.

In the case of Rapira Group LLC, investigators said that the company had been registered through a power of attorney by a British citizen and functioned solely through the website rapira.net, serving only Russian citizens. The agency added that the domain was registered via a Russian registrar, while the company had no bank turnover, assets, or office space in Georgia. Georgian authorities therefore described its registration in the country as merely formal.

The latest sanctions come after the UK had already targeted Georgia-linked entities and individuals over Russia-related concerns. In February, Britain sanctioned pro-government Georgian television channels Imedi TV and PosTV over what it described as “Russian disinformation,” accusing them of spreading deliberately misleading narratives about Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine. Two Georgian-linked individuals are also under British sanctions: former Prosecutor General Otar Partskhaladze and right-wing political figure Levan Vasadze. The UK cited their support for Russia’s war against Ukraine as the basis for the restrictive measures.