Alexander Vinnik, a Russian national and co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange BTC-e, has pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit money laundering. The U.S. Department of Justice announced the plea, which relates to his role in operating BTC-e from 2011 to 2017, a platform that reportedly handled over $9 billion in transactions and moved over $9 billion worth of transactions, causing criminal losses in excess of $100 million. The exchange has been linked to various crimes, including hacking and drug trafficking, due to its lack of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) compliance. Vinnik's guilty plea marks a significant development in a long-standing legal saga, which includes his arrest in Greece in 2017 and a conviction for money laundering in France three years later. He is currently awaiting trial in California.
JUST IN: Alexander Vinnik, an operator of BTC-E, a crypto exchange linked to the 2011 collapse of Mt. Gox, has pled guilty to money laundering charges. Vinnik was first arrested in Greece 🇬🇷 in 2017, but faced a prolonged extradition process. https://t.co/WZnq7d33b0
BTC-e Operator Alexander Vinnik Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Charges https://t.co/OMEy1uEMzy
Alexander Vinnik, co-founder of the now-defunct crypto exchange BTC-e, admitted to conspiring to launder money, marking a significant development in a long-standing legal saga https://t.co/TDDPvQPGiA
Alexander Vinnik, a Russian suspected cybercrime kingpin who was arrested in Greece in 2017, convicted of money laundering in France three years later and is now awaiting trial in California, has pleaded partially guilty https://t.co/I8cIPWf2fm
📣 Latest News: BTC-e founder pleads guilty in $9 billion laundering conspiracy #news #cryptonews #crypto #pricemovement
🚨 Alexander #Vinnik, co-founder of BTC-e, admits to money laundering in a crypto exchange conspiracy, says DOJ. BTC-e handled over $9B from 2011-2017. #DOJ cites lack of AML/KYC compliance and connection to crimes like hacking and drug trafficking.
BTC-e founder admits to money laundering scheme. https://t.co/0moOcAyXWt
BTC-e was blown up in 2017. The founder just pled guilty. In case you're wondering why it seems it takes so long for this stuff to get through the courts/prosecuted. https://t.co/JxAK332CaY https://t.co/9GmyCZwC1S
BTC-e Operator Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Conspiracy. Exchange Moved Over $9B Worth of Transactions; Defendant Caused Criminal Losses in Excess of $100M https://t.co/XNIuk8dbnV
Russian national Alexander Vinnik, one of the operators of crypto exchange BTC-e from 2011 to 2017, pleads guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering (@nikhileshde / CoinDesk) https://t.co/slxh79craA 📫 Subscribe: https://t.co/OyWeKSRpIM https://t.co/WLTj1Na13K
A Russian national pleaded guilty to a money laundering conspiracy related to his role in operating the cryptocurrency exchange BTC-e from 2011 to 2017 https://t.co/8zhax7svKS
BTC-e operator Alexander Vinnik pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit money laundering, the U.S. Department of Justice said Friday. @nikhileshde reports https://t.co/dpXYbdCeo6
A Russian national pleaded guilty to US charges that he lied to the FBI about his participation in an organization that prosecutors said was controlled by sanctioned Russian businessman Konstantin Malofeyev https://t.co/BZIwsGAade