The United Kingdom has imposed sanctions on Pilot Finance Limited, a Nigerian financial services company also known as Continental Global Incentives, for its alleged involvement in facilitating illicit financial transactions linked to Russia’s efforts to circumvent Western sanctions.
The designation, part of a broader package targeting Russia’s shadow financial infrastructure, was announced in mid June 2026.
British authorities accused the firm of supporting the Kremlin backed A7 network, a sophisticated sanctions evasion system used to move funds, procure goods, and sustain Russia’s war economy in Ukraine.
The A7 network, co owned by Russia’s state linked Promsvyazbank (PSB) a bank sanctioned for financing the Russian military and Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor, has been aggressively expanding into Africa.
A7 uses cryptocurrency tools, including a ruble backed stablecoin (A7A5), and alternative payment channels to bypass SWIFT and other Western financial systems.
Pilot Finance served as the local partner for A7 Nigeria, which opened its first public facing African office in Nigeria in late 2025.
Investigative reports show Pilot Finance personnel actively participating in A7 events, including contract signings and office launches featuring high level Russian representatives.
Corporate records reveal the ownership structure of the company.
Continental Global Incentives Limited, the Nigerian entity registered on 14 February 2022 and directly tied to Pilot Finance operations, is 50 percent owned by Ravi Narain and 50 percent owned by Sreenivasan Raviprasad Kuttamkulangara.
Cornelius Babatope Tope Adewoye, Chief Operations Officer of Pilot Finance, plays a central role.
He previously served as director and owner of a UK registered Continental Global Incentives Limited that was incorporated in 2023 and dissolved in 2024.
Adewoye is also a co owner, alongside Narain and Kuttamkulangara, in another Nigerian entity called Almond Business Links Limited.
He has been photographed at A7 Nigeria events wearing A7 lapel pins and counter signing contracts alongside Russian officials.
Pilot Finance, which traces its roots to a Bureau de Change established in 1988, rebranded and expanded into modern treasury, payments, and cross border fintech services.
Its website lists Tope Adewoye as COO, alongside other executives including Fatimah Gana Mahmoud as Chief Commercial Officer.
Chidiebere Emmanuel Ajaere, also known as Chidi Ajaere, a prominent Nigerian businessman and CEO of the Greatman Legend conglomerate, is linked to the broader A7 Africa and A7 Nigeria structures through Kyrgyzstan registered companies.
While not a direct shareholder in Pilot Finance, his entities provide key local infrastructure for the network’s African operations.
The UK sanctions freeze any assets the firm or its controllers may hold in the UK and prohibit British persons or entities from doing business with them.
This move forms part of coordinated Western efforts, including prior US and EU actions against A7, to dismantle Russia’s alternative financial channels.
Analysts say the sanctions highlight vulnerabilities in Africa’s growing fintech and payments sector, where opaque ownership structures and cross border partnerships can inadvertently or deliberately facilitate sanctions evasion.
Pilot Finance has not publicly commented on the sanctions as of the latest reports. The development comes amid heightened scrutiny of Nigerian firms operating in high risk international finance, especially those with ties to sanctioned jurisdictions.
As the 2027 Nigerian elections approach and global geopolitical tensions persist, the case of Pilot Finance underscores the complex intersection of local business ambitions, international sanctions, and great power competition on the African continent.
Ojelabi, the publisher of Freelanews, is an award winning and professionally trained mass communicator and a recipient of the D9112 Superstar Icon Award, who writes ruthlessly about pop culture, religion, politics and entertainment.
