Hassan Maishera
TL;DR
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TRM Labs says crypto exchange HTX has been rotating wallets across TRON, Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, and Solana to evade traditional sanctions screening.
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The strategy reportedly involves replacing hot wallets and funding addresses every few hours, making static address-based monitoring less effective.
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HTX denied any wrongdoing, saying the wallet rotations are routine security practices used across the crypto industry.
Cryptocurrency exchange HTX has been rapidly rotating its wallets across multiple blockchain networks in an apparent effort to evade traditional sanctions screening, according to a new report from blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs.
Released on Tuesday, the report claims HTX has been regularly replacing its hot wallets and funding addresses on TRON, Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, and Solana, making it significantly more difficult for compliance systems that rely on static wallet blacklists to identify transactions linked to the exchange.
Wallet Addresses Reportedly Change Every Few Hours
TRM Labs said HTX retires and replaces wallet addresses every few hours, creating a constantly changing onchain footprint that reduces the effectiveness of conventional address-based sanctions screening tools.
According to Ari Redbord, TRM Labs' Global Head of Policy, the frequent wallet rotation allows the exchange to stay ahead of compliance systems built around fixed lists of sanctioned addresses.
The report follows sanctions imposed in May 2026 by the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) against Huobi Global S.A., the entity that rebranded as HTX. British authorities alleged the exchange played a role in facilitating Russian sanctions evasion.
Despite those sanctions, TRM Labs said HTX has continued operating while adopting increasingly dynamic wallet management practices.
The blockchain analytics firm argues that static wallet screening is becoming less effective as sanctioned entities adopt more sophisticated operational strategies.
Instead, TRM Labs recommends behavior-based attribution, which identifies wallets by analyzing transaction patterns, fund flows, and other onchain behaviors rather than relying solely on known wallet addresses.
According to the firm, this approach allows investigators to associate newly created wallets with sanctioned entities shortly after they become active, reducing the effectiveness of frequent wallet rotations.
HTX Rejects Claims of Sanctions Evasion
HTX disputed the report's characterization of its wallet management practices. A company spokesperson told The Block that the wallet rotations cited by TRM Labs reflect routine operational procedures designed to enhance platform security and are common throughout the cryptocurrency industry.
The spokesperson said the company "categorically rejects" any suggestion that the activity was intended to circumvent sanctions screening and declined to comment further.
Following the UK sanctions announced in May, HTX also stated that regulatory compliance remains one of its highest priorities and that it actively monitors and complies with applicable regulations in jurisdictions where it operates.
The latest report comes as HTX remains under increased regulatory pressure in the United Kingdom.
Earlier this year, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) launched legal proceedings against the exchange over allegations that it published unlawful financial promotions.
The developments highlight the growing challenge facing regulators and blockchain analytics firms as cryptocurrency exchanges and other digital asset platforms adopt increasingly sophisticated operational practices that can complicate sanctions enforcement and compliance monitoring.
