Kazakhstan jails operators of illicit bitcoin exchange, seizes assets

AFM of Kazakhstan completed an investigation into an illegal bitcoin exchange service with a turnover of more than 681m tenge ($1.28m).

According to the agency, three organisers converted cryptocurrencies into fiat for a fee. Their clients numbered 380 people, as confirmed by bank statements.

The defendants received prison terms ranging from 2.5 to 3.5 years, with confiscation of assets worth about 400m tenge (~$752,000), including real estate, vehicles and expensive computer equipment.

The AFM also said that in 2024 criminals laundered drug-trafficking proceeds of 10bn tenge ($18.8m) through illegal exchangers.

In Kazakhstan, the circulation of cryptocurrencies and the operation of exchanges are permitted exclusively within the jurisdiction of the AIFC with a licence, and miners are required to obtain permits.

Between January and October 2024, the country’s authorities shut down 19 bitcoin exchangers with turnover exceeding $60m.