According to ME News, on August 7 (UTC+8), Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced that, in a joint operation with the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, it conducted a series of raids targeting illegal cryptocurrency exchanges in Moscow’s financial district. Over 20 individuals were arrested, and nine unlicensed currency exchange channels were shut down. These channels are accused of laundering money for telephone fraud syndicates. The FSB stated that fraud call centers based in Ukraine used gray-market exchange outlets in Moscow to convert cash stolen from Russian citizens into cryptocurrency and transfer it abroad. One of the arrested individuals, featured in an official video, claimed that his office laundered up to $2 million per day. Most of those arrested are young Russians aged 18 to 25 from various regions, hired as couriers to collect cash from victims. Some claimed they believed they were working as undercover informants for the FSB or Russia’s financial monitoring agency, Rosfinmonitoring. The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has launched a criminal investigation into the large-scale fraud scheme, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The FSB continues to verify victim identities to gather evidence. (Source: Foresight News)
Russia's FSB raids illegal crypto exchanges, arrests over 20 suspects
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Summary
On August 7, 2026, Russian AML authorities, including the FSB, conducted raids in Moscow’s financial district, arresting over 20 individuals linked to unlicensed cryptocurrency exchange operations. Nine illegal trading channels were seized during the operation. The suspects are alleged to have facilitated money laundering for phone fraud rings, with one accused of processing up to $2 million daily. Most of those arrested were under 25 and served as cash collectors for victims. The Ministry of Internal Affairs has opened a criminal case, which could result in prison sentences of up to 10 years. The crackdown signals stricter enforcement of cryptocurrency exchange regulations in the country.
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