Russia cracks down on 9 crypto exchanges in Moscow City
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- Russia's FSB raided nine unregistered crypto exchange services at the Moscow International Business Center (Moscow City), detaining more than 20 employees in a joint operation with the Interior Ministry.
- The exchanges allegedly converted cash stolen from Russian phone-scam victims into cryptocurrency and transferred it to accounts controlled by what the FSB described as Ukrainian handlers.
- Authorities said couriers aged 18 to 25 collected cash from victims and delivered it to the exchanges for conversion into crypto.
- The FSB stated that young people from Russian regions were recruited to work at the exchanges despite having limited financial literacy.
- Russia's Interior Ministry launched a criminal investigation into large-scale fraud, an offense punishable by up to 10 years in prison under Russian law.
- The FSB said it is continuing to identify victims and assess potential compensation.
Why it matters: With over 20 employees detained and a fraud probe carrying up to a 10-year sentence, Russia is signaling a sharp enforcement turn against unregistered crypto services — and explicitly framing the scheme as cross-border, linking fraud proceeds to handlers in Ukraine, which doubles as geopolitical cover for a domestic crackdown.
