Russia Cracks Down on Unregistered Crypto Exchanges Amid Fraud Allegations

Russian authorities have cracked down on unregistered cryptocurrency exchanges in Moscow, shutting down nine platforms accused of laundering proceeds from fraud. The operation was carried out by the Federal Security Service and the Interior Ministry, who detained over 20 individuals during coordinated raids at the Moscow City business center.

The authorities allege that the exchanges were used to convert money obtained from Russian victims of telephone scams into cryptocurrency before transferring the funds to accounts associated with operators based in Ukraine. Investigators identified couriers who collected cash from fraud victims and delivered it to the cryptocurrency exchanges, where it was converted into digital assets and moved through other accounts.

Russia's Interior Ministry has opened a criminal investigation into large-scale fraud, while authorities continue to identify individuals affected by the scams and assess the possibility of recovering or compensating them for their losses. The crackdown comes as Russia implements new rules governing cryptocurrency transactions and moves to place digital-asset activity under a more structured regulatory system.