PSB chief Fradkov says A7A5 ruble stablecoin has processed almost $140 billion since launch

The ruble-pegged token A7A5, launched in early 2025 by A7, a company created by PSB, has processed almost $140 billion since inception, according to PSB chief Petr Fradkov. For high-risk payment operators, the interesting part is not the headline number itself, but the infrastructure angle: PSB is pitching non-USDT settlement as an alternative rail outside the existing Western stack.

1. Fradkov said A7A5 is the largest non-dollar stablecoin and described it as PSB’s pride because it was the first ruble-pegged stablecoin issued through A7. He said the token is “a small piece” of the global stablecoin market, but still the biggest non-dollar one.
2. The token was issued in early 2025 by A7, which was created by PSB. Fradkov said other countries also issue stablecoins tied to national assets, and argued that settlement rails not tied to USDT are the part of the market that could eventually become a real alternative to established Western infrastructure.
3. Fradkov tied the creation of A7’s cross-border payments platform to the restrictive measures introduced in 2022. He said financial restrictions were the toughest of all the measures, and that the payments market had long operated in an oligopoly where a few players set pricing and other terms.
4. He added that after sanctions were imposed on major banks in 2022, a large payments-agent market emerged, including gray operators that were unregulated and did not pay taxes. According to Fradkov, payment commissions at the time reached 5–6%, and in some cases 7% of the transaction amount.
5. Fradkov said A7 is the first agent company in this sector and the first resident company from this segment with full transparent reporting in the Russian framework. He said the company has paid 25.5 billion rubles in taxes since it began operating.