The Enforcement Directorate (ED) of India's Finance Ministry sent a request to Binance to block 150.22 BTC (~$2.5 million) belonging to the E-nuggets team. The developers are accused of money laundering.
The total value of assets frozen in this case is estimated at $8.4 million.
In February 2021, Kolkata law enforcement received a complaint against the dapp's creator, Amir Khan. It alleged that he and his associates launched E-nuggets, attracted “significant sums” from the public, after which they abruptly blocked withdrawals and deleted all data from the app.
Amir Khan's whereabouts have been unknown since the investigation began.
The ED said that “more than 300 accounts on cryptocurrency platforms were used for money laundering.”
In early 2022, authorities managed to freeze 77.6 BTC (~$1.5 million) linked to E-nuggets.
Earlier in September, the Indian bitcoin exchange WazirX gained access to its bank accounts, blocked by the ED. The funds were frozen amid suspicions of money laundering $350 million.
In August, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said that the company never owned a stake in Zanmai Labs, the entity behind WazirX. He said the deal announced in November 2019 never closed.
Subsequently, WazirX co-founder Nischal Shetty refuted Zhao's statements regarding the companies’ relationship. He said there are documents confirming the sale, but he cannot show them “for legal reasons”.
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