Cryptex

2024: Hit by US sanctions

The United States imposed sanctions against the crypto service Cryptex operating in Russia

On September 26, 2024, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Treasury Department announced the imposition of sanctions against the Cryptex crypto service operating in Russia. The measures are said to be aimed at protecting national security and the integrity of the U.S. financial system.

The Cryptex platform is registered under the name International Payment Service Provider in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (Caribbean Islands). It is an anonymous service designed to exchange, buy and sell cryptocurrencies without the need for verification for any type of transaction. The US Treasury claims Cryptex provides financial services to cybercriminals.

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Sanctions were also imposed against Russian Sergei Ivanov, who, according to the US department, was an administrator of Cryptex. According to the financial crime agency of the US Treasury (FinCEN), Cryptex has withdrawn more than $720 million in transactions with services "often used by ransomware developers and cybercriminals." Ivanov is also associated with the crypto exchanger PM2BTC, which "contributes to the laundering of convertible virtual currency associated with ransomware and other illegal operations." It is emphasized that the PM2BTC uses unusual obfuscation, which prevents the identification of illegal transactions. A similar method has been used by several suspicious virtual currency exchanges, some of which are under OFAC sanctions.

The US Department of State announced a reward of $10 million for information that will lead to the arrest of Ivanov. The US Secret Service Cyber ​ ​ Investigation Unit, the Netherlands Police and the Netherlands Fiscal Intelligence and Investigation Service (FIOD) seized web domains and infrastructure related to Cryptex and PM2BTC. ^[1]

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