U.S. arrests Bitzlato cofounder, alleges $700M illicit funds processed

U.S. arrests Bitzlato cofounder, alleges $700M illicit funds processed

On January 18^th, the Department of Justice, US Attorney’s Office Eastern District of New York published a press release that stated that Anatoly Legkodymov was arrested on January 17^th in Miami, Florida.  Assistant Attorney General Polite stated, “As alleged, the defendant helped operate a cryptocurrencyA cryptocurrency (or crypto currency) is a digital asset des… More exchangeA business that allows customers to trade cryptocurrencies o… More that failed to implement anti-money laundering safeguards and enabled criminals to profit from their wrongdoing, including ransomwareAn entity associated with a type of malicious program that i… More and drug trafficking.”  Legkodymov is the majority shareholder and cofounder of Hong Kong-registered virtual currency exchange Bitzlato Ltd.  Prosecutors said Bitzlato exchanged more than $700 million in illicit funds.  There was also a notable connection to Hydramarket, an illicit online marketplace for narcotics, stolen financial information, fraudulent identification documents, and money laundering servicesGeneral services, including non-profits, forums and news sit… More, which German and US law enforcement shut down in April 2022.  US agencies cooperated with international law enforcement agencies, including but not limited to EUROPOL, France, Netherlands, and Belgium, for the takedown of Bitzlato and arrest of Legkodymov and several other related persons in Europe. The press release [FBI Assistant Deputy Director Turner] also stated, “The FBI will continue to pursue actors who attempt to mask their criminalA Criminal is an individual or group who has been convicted … More activity behind keyboards and use means such as cryptocurrency to evade law enforcement”.

FinCEN also released an order identifying Bitzlato as a “primary money laundering concern” on January 18^th pursuant to section 9714(a) of the Combatting Russian Money Laundering Act.  Within their press release FinCEN stated, “Bitzlato is a financial institution operating outside of the United States that is of primary money laundering concern in connection with Russian illicit finance. Bitzlato plays a critical role in laundering Convertible Virtual Currency (CVC) by facilitating illicit transactions for ransomware actors”.  If you might be wondering what this means, FinCEN also published an FAQ document on January 18^th, which highlights the similar nature to a 311 action.  Specifically, covered financial institutions should : “(1) cease any and all transmittals of funds, including CVC, from or to Bitzlato, or from or to any account or CVC addressAn address is a cryptographic key that “owns” bitcoins. This… More administered by Bitzlato, except as otherwise set forth in the Order; and (2) incorporate the determination that Bitzlato is of primary money laundering concern into their Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AMLAML rules are in place to help protect against and report su… More/CFT) compliance programs.”

Clients of CipherTrace Armada were previously alerted to this activity, with Bitzlato’s attributed interactions showing significant send-and-receive activity with dark markets and high-risk exchanges.  Bitzlato might not have had much relevance to those traditionally involved in crypto, but it’s been on our radar for many years stemming from investigations into dark marketA Dark Market is a commercial website that operates via dark… More and ransomware activity.  It’s also been a regular example pointed out in our training program, particularly our Certified Cryptocurrency Risk Specialist course.

Events such as this continue to highlight the importance of anti-money laundering/combatting the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) compliance programs, as well as the underlying tools that support AML/CFT compliance programs in a risk-based manner.  BlockchainWhat is a blockchain? A blockchain is a shared digital ledge… More analytic tools, such as CipherTrace’s Armada, when properly integrated into nonbank financial institution and financial institution compliance frameworks, would alert other exchanges and financial institutions to concerning activity to/from entities such as Bitzlato.  This type of monitoring would undoubtedly lead to high volumes of suspicious activity/transaction reports finding their way to financial intelligence units and law enforcement in many countries.  Counterparty risk is critical within the virtual assetThe term virtual asset refers to any digital representation … More ecosystem to weed out the questionable actors along with blatant criminal supporting parties such as Bitzlato and Garantex (previously sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control on April 5, 2022).

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• Source: https://ciphertrace.com/u-s-arrests-bitzlato-cofounder-alleges-700m-illicit-funds-processed/