A7, a financial firm in Moscow, created an application that uses OpenAI technology to forge invoices for purchasing sensitive electronic equipment. This advanced system successfully deceived banks while acquiring drone components and Nvidia servers valued at millions of dollars.
Since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has faced significant barriers in the global financial system. Russian banks are cut off from using the dollar, and most international banks have stopped processing transactions linked to Russian companies, making it difficult to obtain both consumer and military-related products from abroad.
Recent reports from the Financial Times and The New York Times revealed that A7 established a comprehensive international network to help Russian companies carry out foreign transactions despite Western sanctions and restrictions imposed by the international banking system. This network cleverly employed front companies, cryptocurrencies, forged trade documents, and foreign bank accounts. Leaked internal documents from the company reveal these activities, noting that an unnamed Hungarian company played a crucial role in facilitating transfers to the European Union.
Interestingly, A7’s use of cryptocurrency for payments enabled the procurement of various technologies from China, including GPS devices, engines, batteries, chips, electronic components, and optical cables. These items ultimately supported the drone and missile programs of both Russia and Iran.
For example, the state-owned Kyrgyz Republic Trade Company paid one million dollars for a shipment officially labeled as containing car floor mats, body paint products, goggles, and ropes, but which actually included drone parts for the Russian military.
In the first four months of 2025, A7 facilitated over 500 million dollars in illicit transactions for Russian businesses and individuals. Analysis from The Times indicates that more than 130 million dollars of this amount was earmarked for products that could strengthen Russia’s military industrial base. The Xi’an Heavy Equipment and Technology Company, a state-owned enterprise in China, received payments totaling over 27 million dollars from A7 for steel manufacturing equipment capable of producing artillery shells and vehicle armor.
Nearly one million dollars also flowed from a Russian front company to Hong Kong’s Insight Global Technology for Nvidia servers used in AI development. These servers are exactly the kind of technology that Western nations are trying to keep from reaching Russia.
A7 facilitated close to four million dollars in payments to Walksnail, a Chinese company that produces radio and video components used in drones operating on the Ukrainian front. Instead of complete military drones, the focus shifted to acquiring critical components like video transmission systems, radio components, chips, and sensors, all of which have dual-use capabilities.
The most fascinating aspect of this case is A7’s application for invoice forgery. According to source code analysis by The New York Times, the application was built on OpenAI technology to generate fake versions of original commercial invoices after scanning them, making the transactions appear harmless to banks.
A notable example involved a Moscow company purchasing advanced gesture recognition sensors from China for nearly 46,000 dollars. A7 employees uploaded the original invoice into the system, and the application, described as a unique version of ChatGPT, processed the document to create a forged invoice, allowing employees to choose from over 6,000 different stamps for the document.
The forged invoice ultimately listed seemingly innocuous LED advertising boards instead of sensitive electronic devices, while the amount and date remained unchanged.
OpenAI stated that the access credentials found in the application are no longer functional and that the company does not allow access to its technology within Russia.
