According to BlockBeats, Alexander Vinnik, the key figure behind the now-defunct trading platform BTC-e, has admitted to participating in a money laundering conspiracy. Court documents reveal that from its establishment around 2011 until around July 2017, BTC-e processed over $9 billion worth of transactions, serving over a million users worldwide, including many in the United States.
BTC-e was one of the main channels for global cybercriminals to transfer, launder, and store the proceeds of their illegal activities. The platform received criminal proceeds from numerous computer intrusions and hacking incidents, ransomware attacks, identity theft schemes, corrupt public officials, and drug trafficking gangs. Vinnik's operation of BTC-e was intended to facilitate these illegal activities, and he is held responsible for at least $121 million in losses.
Previously reported by BlockBeats on February 2, the U.S. Department of Justice stated that Vinnik, the backbone of the long-closed trading platform BTC-e, was arrested in Latvia. He was accused of participating in money laundering related to criminal activities from 2011 to 2017, with the amount involved exceeding $4 billion.
