Russian crypto exchange Garantex, popular with ransomware gangs and darknet markets, has been shut down in an international law enforcement operation. The US Department of Justice, along with agencies from Germany and Finland, seized the exchange's domains and servers and froze $28 million in crypto with the assistance of stablecoin issuer Tether. The exchange had been sanctioned by the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Asset Control for facilitating money laundering for ransomware actors and darknet markets. Garantex processed over $60 billion in crypto transactions after being sanctioned and has transacted over $96 billion in total. The exchange's clientele allegedly included the Lazarus Group, North Korea's hacking squad, and Russian oligarchs evading international sanctions. Two operators of the exchange have been charged with various crimes in the US.



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