Crypto exchange Bitget will restrict transactions tied to 16 platforms and entities, including HTX and EXMO, rolling the controls out in three waves on August 7, August 13, and August 23. The exchange disclosed the policy in a support post published Saturday, saying transfers connected directly or indirectly to the named entities may be reviewed, rejected, or met with account restrictions, and that accounts can be terminated where activity breaches its terms. The move lands days after Binance published a near-identical list on the same three dates, putting two of the largest exchanges by volume on a shared enforcement calendar.
Sanctions screening is the process an exchange uses to check whether a deposit or withdrawal touches a wallet, platform, or person named on a government restrictions list before the transfer is allowed to settle.
Key takeaways
- Bitget is phasing in transaction restrictions against 16 entities across August 7, August 13, and August 23.
- The August 23 wave is the largest and covers HTX, EXMO, Rapira, Aifory Pro, ABCeX, WhiteBird, NoOnecrypto, Tradex, Monease, BitPapa, and Exnode.
- The first two waves follow US Treasury OFAC sanctions issued August 7 against Shelbit and Aban Tether over Iran-linked transfers.
- The August 23 wave stems from the European Union’s 21st Russia sanctions package, adopted July 23, which named Huobi Global SA and imposed an EU transaction ban effective that date.
Published: August 16, 2026, 16:20 UTC
Two separate sanctions regimes, one enforcement calendar
The three waves trace back to two unrelated government actions rather than a single decision. The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Shelbit General Trading LLC and Aban Tether on August 7, alleging the firms processed crypto transactions that helped evade Iran-related sanctions, including transfers linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Those two names formed Bitget’s first wave the same day. A7 Africa, A7 Nigeria, and PilotFinance Ltd followed on August 13.
The August 23 group comes from Brussels. The EU’s 21st sanctions package against Russia, adopted July 23, named Huobi Global SA, the legal entity behind HTX, alongside EXMO, Rapira, BitPapa, Aifory Pro, WhiteBird, NoOnecrypto, and Exnode. Under that package, direct or indirect dealings with the listed platforms become prohibited for EU persons and entities from August 23.
Bitget is applying the restrictions platform-wide rather than confining them to EU-based accounts, the same approach Binance took. That distinction matters: the underlying EU measure binds EU persons, but the exchanges are screening the flows themselves.
Indirect exposure is the part that catches ordinary users
The restriction is not limited to sending funds straight to a listed platform. Bitget said transactions with indirect links to the named entities may also be flagged, and asked users to verify the source of their funds, the wallet addresses involved, and any intermediary in the chain before transferring.
In practice, that widens the surface considerably. A user who withdraws from HTX to a personal wallet, routes through a swap service, then deposits to Bitget after August 23 may still trip a review, because the funds carry a traceable path back to a listed entity. Chain-analytics tooling reads that history regardless of how many hops sit in between.
For businesses settling in crypto, the operational cost is provenance record-keeping. Treasury teams that accept customer payments from mixed sources now need to demonstrate where balances originated, or risk having withdrawals held at the exchange layer.
HTX disputes the reach of the bans
HTX has contested how broadly the designations apply. Justin Sun said on X on August 14 that he had been in contact with Binance, that the matter concerned Binance’s UK and EU users, and that HTX does not conduct business in either region. He added that settlement negotiations with UK and EU regulators are already in progress.
UK authorities have taken a wider reading. The country’s sanctions office has said the designation of Huobi Global extends to the HTX exchange itself, on the basis that Huobi Global owns the platform. HTX has said it is committed to full compliance and is continuing settlement talks.
What happens next
August 23 is the date to watch. Two of the highest-volume exchanges will begin screening the same list on the same day, which concentrates the disruption into a single window rather than spreading it out. Users holding balances on HTX or the other named platforms have roughly a week to move them through routes that do not depend on Bitget or Binance as an exit.
Whether other venues follow is the open question. Coinbase, Kraken, and OKX have not published equivalent lists. If they do, the named platforms lose most of their remaining liquidity bridges to the mainstream market. If they do not, flows reroute rather than stop, which is the pattern earlier sanctions rounds produced. W3BN previously covered Shelbit’s $676 million in transfers to Binance and the Russian crypto law signed in August, both of which sit upstream of this enforcement round.
Frequently asked questions
Which platforms does Bitget restrict on August 23?
The August 23 wave covers HTX, EXMO Ltd, Rapira, Aifory Pro, ABCeX, WhiteBird, NoOnecrypto INC., Tradex, Monease Ltd, BitPapa, and Exnode/Exnode Pay, registered as Arvix. Earlier waves on August 7 and August 13 covered Aban Tether, Shelbit, A7 Africa, A7 Nigeria, and PilotFinance.
Does this apply to users outside the EU?
Bitget applied the policy across its platform rather than limiting it to EU accounts, mirroring Binance’s approach. The EU’s underlying transaction ban binds EU persons and entities, but the exchanges are screening transaction flows themselves, so non-EU users can still see transfers reviewed or rejected.
What should users holding funds on HTX do before August 23?
Bitget asked users to verify the source of their funds, the wallet addresses involved, and any intermediary used. Anyone planning to move balances off a listed platform and into Bitget or Binance faces a narrowing window, since transfers with indirect links to the named entities may also be flagged.
