U.S. DOJ shut down Russian money laundering scheme through three crypto exchanges

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) seized the domains of three cryptocurrency exchanges linked to money laundering for Russia, totaling over $800 million. According to the press release, UAPS, PM2BTC, and Cryptex facilitated illegal transactions. Additionally, two Russian nationals have been charged with embezzling millions through a large-scale money laundering scheme that involved cybercriminals worldwide.

As detailed in declassified court documents, the DOJ has accused a citizen, Sergey Ivanov, also known by the alias "Taleon," of providing money laundering services to cybercriminals, including groups involved in ransomware and traffickers of illicit substances from the dark web.

Ivanov is alleged to have created and led the Russian payment and exchange services UAPS, PinPays, and PM2BTC, through which approximately $1.15 billion in digital assets were processed for money laundering purposes from July 2013 to August 2024.

Another cryptocurrency exchange, Cryptex, was also implicated in money laundering. It processed transactions totaling $1.4 billion, with 31% of these related to criminal activities. U.S. authorities seized the domains "Cryptex.net" and "Cryptex.one." These sites offered users anonymity, allowing them to register on the exchange without fulfilling Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.

The documents also mention Russian national Timur Shakhmametov, who was accused of managing Joker's Stash — one of the largest sites for selling stolen credit and debit card information.

According to the press release, an analysis of cryptocurrency blockchain data indicated that about 32% of all Bitcoin transactions processed by these exchanges were associated with criminal activity. Approximately $158 million worth of Bitcoin was linked to fraud, over $8.8 million to payments obtained via ransomware, and around $4.7 million stemmed from the sale of illicit substances on the dark web.

Alongside the Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of the Treasury also imposed sanctions against Ivanov and Cryptex. The U.S. State Department announced a reward of $11 million for information that could lead to the arrest of others involved in Ivanov's or Joker's Stash's activities.