Germany: Completion of the Crypto exchange exchange Exch-34 million euros confiscated

• German investigators confiscated cryptocurrency for 34 million euros and closed the “crypto exchange” Exch.
• Exch is associated with illegal crypto transactions of $ 1.9 billion that are connected to mega hacks such as bybit and genesis.

The German authorities have closed the EXCH crypto exchange service. The operation ordered by the Frankfurt am Main public prosecutor’s office and carried out by the BKA led to 34 million euros in digital assets and over eight terabytes of data.

The investigators referred to Exch as a hub for global cyber crime, through which anonymous transactions worth almost $ 1.9 billion were handled. The creation of the platform is the result of international cooperation against cryptocrimity.

Money laundering in the billion dollar area

Exch operated since 2014 and worked without Kyc protocols (Know Your Customer) or AML protocol (anti-Money Lundering). It enabled users the anonymous exchange of cryptocurrencies in Clearnet and Darknet.

According to investigators, the platform has the addresses of the users and the transaction history. Exch was advertised in Darknet forums and became a favorite among cyber criminals due to its complete anonymity.

The authorities assume that Exch enabled major criminal hacks, including the theft of $ 243 million at Genesis Creditor and the Bybit Multi signature wallet Exploit. The blockchain researcher ZachxBT connected the service with several top-class hacks.

The BKA confirmed that some of the confiscated assets are connected to the Bybit theft and the fixed float exploit. The investigators said that Exch refused to freeze stolen funds or to work with the law enforcement authorities, and were therefore part of cybercrime networks.

Although Exch announced a voluntary closure on May 1st, the authorities and the Dutch law enforcement agencies quickly ran. The operation included raids, confiscations of servers and forensic analyzes. The officials said they had been investigating Exch for years and secured important evidence during the transition period.

Data protection claims of regulatory authorities rejected

In a final statement, the operators of Exch contested any participation in criminal activities. The platform was designed to protect customers’ privacy and criticized AML-compliant services for not preventing financial crime.

They claimed the pressure of the regulatory authorities wrongly on data protection technologies. But critics and civil servants said that the unregulated anonymity of Exch made it a money laundering paradise.

The BKA spoke of one of the greatest confiscations of digital assets in Germany and emphasized the need to enforce AML to prevent the spread of unregulated financial systems. The investigation continues to find out who was involved in the money laundering models.

After the takedown, Exch announced that 50 BTC Donate to Privacy Tech projects: Monero, Mweb, Dash, Tornado Cash and Thorchain. The law enforcement agencies speak of a precedent for crypto platforms that enable financial crime on a large scale, and others would follow.