Russian Cryptocurrency Money Laundering Operations Taken Down By US Authorities, Illegal Exchange Websites Seized

In a coordinated effort, the U.S. Justice Department, working with other arms of the state and international law enforcement agencies, seized websites of illegal cryptocurrency exchanges that allegedly supported Russian money laundering networks.

What Happened: According to a press statement released Thursday, the actions encompassed an indictment against a Russian national, Sergey “Taleon” Ivanov, a prolific cyber money launderer, whose services have been used by other big cybercriminals to attack major U.S. companies.

Ivanov allegedly established and ran Russian payment and exchange services UAPS, PinPays, and PM2BTC, which provided money transfer and laundering services to criminals. On-chain analysis disclosed that 32% of all traced Bitcoin BTC/USD sent to the addresses of these platforms originated from addresses associated with criminal activity, like ransomware, and darknet drug trafficking.

The Secret Service got the court’s approval to seize the domains of UAPS and PM2BTC, along with Cryptex, another notorious platform that advertised its money laundering-as-a-service business.

Acting on this, law enforcement authorities in the Netherlands seized servers hosting PM2BTC and Cryptex, recovering more than $7 million in cryptocurrencies.

Another Russian Timur Shakhmametov, known online as "JokerStash" and "Vega," was charged in the same indictment.

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The government’s confiscation of these domains will impede their use for money laundering. Visitors to these sites will now encounter a message indicating their seizure by the federal government, the DOJ said.

Why It Matters: This crackdown on money laundering operations came in the wake of an increasing number of cryptocurrency-related crimes.

Earlier this month, the FBI arrested two individuals suspected of stealing and laundering over $230 million in Bitcoin. The suspects, Malone Lam and Jeandiel Serrano, were accused of attempting to launder thousands of stolen Bitcoins via mixing services.

These incidents highlight the growing concern over the use of cryptocurrencies in illegal activities and the increasing vigilance of U.S. authorities in combating such crimes.

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