The US Department of Justice and law enforcement worldwide joined forces to take down Garantex which was a major Russian cryptocurrency exchange because it helped criminal syndicates and terrorists launder illegal money.

Working together with international partners Europol FBI and law enforcement agencies the DOJ filed legal action to shut down Garantex because they served illegal money operations for multiple years.

Despite active legal investigations the exchange allowed cybercriminals on a global scale to use its services to support ransomware gangs and sanction-targeted operators in drug dealing activities.

Garantex Facilitated $96 Billion in Illicit Transactions

Garantex started doing illegal activities in 2019 by processing $96 billion worth of crypto deals for criminals including cyber gangs like Conti, Black Basta, and Play. The exchange helped cybercriminals more after Hydra Market shutdown when it began supporting fraudsters in 2022.

A team of US, German, and Finnish authoritiestook down this exchange and recovered $26 million found in criminal transactions. The police have charged Aleksej Besciokov and Aleksandr Mira Serda with cryptocurrency money laundering as investigating authorities.

Garantex facilitated money laundering for criminal groups based on investigation results from Chainalysis which reveal the platform”s association with major cybercrime and financial frauds.

The researchers confirmed Garantex facilitated the transfer of money from criminal operations into CSAM distribution networks and terrorist groups while making money for Russia”s cybercrime market.

Garantex’s Role in Worldwide Criminal Activities Revealed

Garantex operates illegal operations at an overwhelming amount. Although Garantex handled $96 billion in transactions they enabled ten times more illegal crypto deals than other exchanges.

Their involvement in criminal transactions reached $1.3 billion – equaling 1.35% of all trading at the exchange. These numbers show that Garantex plays a fundamental part in worldwide criminal activities.

The criminal connections of Garantex extended to Lazarus Group and other criminal organizations including Mega Dark Market and Solaris Market. The Russian money laundering group Ekaterina Zhdanova led spread its illicit activities through Garantex.

Groups worldwide took decisive steps to restrict Garantex through website confiscation and tightened monitoring of its services. The joint work of law enforcement agencies with blockchain firms and the industry preserves sizeable damage to Garantex”s illegal operations and helps protect all digital currencies.

This enforcement sends strong warnings to all other crypto exchanges that participate in illegal deals. The shutdown of Garantex shows that global authorities will take down money laundering and terrorist finance platforms operating in crypto.