eXch Platform to Shut Down Amid Bybit Money Laundering Allegations

The automated crypto exchange eXch announced its closure due to allegations of laundering approximately $1.4 billion, stolen by North Korean hackers Lazarus Group from Bybit.

The company will cease operations on May 1.

eXch is a platform for automatic cryptocurrency exchange. It focuses on privacy, requiring no registration or KYC procedures.

The project’s leadership stated that the decision was made by the majority of the team members. They claimed that continuing operations is impossible due to “increased pressure and a mistaken interpretation of their privacy principles.”

eXch is suspected of being used by Lazarus to launder funds stolen from Bybit. Previously, analysts noted a sharp increase in Ethereum volumes on the platform immediately after the hack.

Lazarus has started laundering the $1.4B stolen ETH.

Exch[.]cx, a no-KYC exchange, has recorded an abnormal spike in ETH volume—20K ETH in the past 24 hours versus its usual 800 ETH.

Their Bitcoin reserves are also empty, but their ETH reserves have increased by 900%. pic.twitter.com/WBcbBrqPjR

— vxdb (@vxdb) February 22, 2025

In February, eXch denied the allegations, asserting that opponents of decentralized technologies and privacy were behind them.

In its latest statement, the platform expressed disagreement with the accusations but acknowledged that illegally obtained funds might have been present on it.

Project representatives also criticized competitors’ initiatives to block funds linked to fraud, calling them a “false approach” to combating money laundering.

According to the eXch team, such measures undermine the principles of decentralization and privacy on which crypto technologies are built. Platform representatives emphasized that privacy should not be perceived as a crime.

eXch also announced the creation of an open-source fund of 50 BTC to support any FOSS projects.

Back in March, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou stated that about 89% of the funds stolen from the exchange could be traced. According to him, 7.6% of the funds “disappeared into the shadows,” while another 3.5% were frozen.