The U.S. Secret Service has taken significant action by seizing domains linked to the Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex and freezing over $26 million in its assets, citing alleged sanctions violations and money laundering.

Founded in 2019, Garantex has faced criticism for enabling transactions for illicit actors, including notorious groups like the darknet market Hydra and the ransomware group Conti.

The exchange reportedly collected minimal know-your-customer (KYC) information, allowing users to operate under pseudonymous identities without proper scrutiny.

This operation was a collaborative effort involving multiple law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, Europol, and police from several European nations.

Court documents allege that Garantex's operators knowingly facilitated money laundering and took steps to conceal these activities from law enforcement.

This crackdown on Garantex is part of a broader international initiative aimed at combating ransomware attacks and dismantling the financial networks that support them.

U.S. Attorney Erik S. Siebert emphasized that Garantex served as a hub for laundering illicit funds, highlighting the commitment to dismantling such networks globally.

The recent actions follow previous sanctions imposed by the European Union on Garantex, which was part of a larger package targeting entities linked to Russia.

The indictment specifically claims that Garantex allowed transactions linked to the Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking organization notorious for cybercrimes.

Despite being sanctioned, the administrators of Garantex continued to operate and designed their activities to evade detection by U.S. authorities.

The investigation into Garantex has been bolstered by international cooperation among law enforcement agencies and blockchain analytics firms, underscoring the global effort to tackle cryptocurrency-related crimes.

Additionally, it is alleged that one of Garantex's co-founders used another exchange to further launder money, complicating their operations and evading regulatory scrutiny.