The Federal police in Germany (BKA) seized the server infrastructure and shut down the ‘eXch’ cryptocurrency trade platform for alleged cash laundering cybercrime proceeds.
Throughout the legislation enforcement operation, the authorities additionally seized eight terabytes of knowledge and cryptocurrency (Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, and Sprint) price roughly $38,000,000, making this the third largest seizure of digital property in BKA’s historical past.
The BKA says the platform didn’t adjust to ‘know-your-customer’ rules, permitting cash laundering by cybercrime and different unlawful rings to bloom.
“Since its inception, an estimated 1.9 billion US {dollars} price of cryptocurrencies have been transferred by means of the service,” reads the announcement.
“There’s a suspicion that eXch particularly accepted Bitcoin of prison origin. Amongst different issues, a part of the stolen 1.5 billion US {dollars} from the crypto trade Bybit, which was hacked on February 21, 2025, is believed to have been laundered by means of eXch.”
The record-breaking Bybit crypto-heist was carried out by the infamous North Korean hacking group ‘Lazarus,’ in accordance with a number of blockchain specialists.
Supply: BKA
eXch was instantly implicated in Lazarus’ cash laundering efforts, which it vehemently denied on the time, dismissing some suspicious fund flows by means of them as remoted instances.
Ultimately, the service’s operators succumbed to the stress and elevated scrutiny, saying they might shut down all operations on Might 1, 2025.
Nonetheless, BKA’s seizure of eXch infrastructure, even when not lively, may assist hint stolen quantities and determine cybercriminals who used the service.
The operators of the platform aren’t off the hook, because the German police introduced they’re below suspicion of business cash laundering and working a prison on-line buying and selling platform.
The BKA says that, regardless of the restricted time they’d since eXch introduced the shutdown of its service, they managed to safe quite a few items of proof that led to at the moment’s legislation enforcement operation.
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