Binance, Hydra and Finiko named leading counterparties in Bitzlato case

Binance cryptocurrency exchange, the darknet marketplace Hydra and the Finiko pyramid have entered the top three counterparties receiving funds on the Bitzlato exchange, which U.S. authorities accuse of laundering $700 million. This is stated in the order FinCEN.

According to the agency, these three companies, from May 2018 to September 2022, received the largest volumes of bitcoins from Bitzlato.

Over the same period, the top three sending counterparties included Hydra, the P2P platform LocalBitcoins and the Finiko.

“Approximately two-thirds of the main counterparties receiving from and sending to Bitzlato are linked to darknet marketplaces or fraud,” FinCEN noted.

A Binance spokesperson said the exchange is prepared to provide law enforcement with \”substantial assistance\” in the investigation.

FinCEN designated Bitzlato as a \”primary money-laundering concern\”. According to the order, the platform is barred from transferring funds to any financial institutions, as it played a key role in processing illicit transactions by ransomware operators in Russia.

In addition, Bitzlato’s transaction activity \”shows a substantial link with illicit counterparties\”, such as darknet marketplaces and scammers from Russia, the agency added.

On January 18, the Bitzlato team stated that there had been a hack and the withdrawal of part of the funds. A few hours later, the platform announced that the service would be suspended.

On the evening of January 17, the U.S. Department of Justice arrested the platform’s founder Anatoly Legkodymov on charges of laundering $700 million tied to Hydra.

Follow ForkLog’s Bitcoin news on our Telegram — cryptocurrency news, rates and analysis.