The US Federal Bureau of Investigation has dismantled a crypto laundering service that helped cybercriminals wash tens of millions of US dollars in illicit digital funds. FBI agents seized the service’s servers and unsealed charges against an alleged Russian operator.

The illegal crypto exchange, operated by a Russian national, is believed to have processed around $70 million in illicit proceeds, according to the FBI.

Long-running laundering operation

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the unsealing of an indictment in the Eastern District of Michigan against Mykhalio Petrovich Chudnovets, 39, a Russian national, which charges him with one count of money laundering conspiracy,” the US Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

According to court documents, Chudnovets began offering money laundering services to cybercriminals as early as 2010. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. He remains at large and, like all defendants, is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

Focus shifts to crypto infrastructure

The FBI said it disrupted a crypto trading venue branded E-Note by taking down the online infrastructure that supported its operations. The platform allegedly facilitated money laundering for transnational cybercriminal groups, including those targeting healthcare systems and other critical US infrastructure.

The takedown is part of a broader law enforcement strategy aimed at cutting off services that enable cybercrime profits. US authorities have increasingly targeted mixers and rogue exchanges, arguing that disrupting cash-out channels raises costs and friction across the criminal ecosystem.

This marks at least the second major crypto laundromat exposed in recent weeks. In late November, a coordinated operation by Europol and Swiss and German authorities shut down a crypto mixing platform and seized more than €25 million.

Europol said the platform operated on both the clear web and the dark web, using software designed to block transaction traceability on the Blockchain. The service was popular among criminals laundering proceeds from drug and weapons trafficking as well as bank card fraud.

Such platforms are typically used before digital assets reach legitimate exchanges, allowing users to convert already “cleaned” coins into other crypto assets or fiat currencies via ATMs and bank accounts, Europol explained.

Sources:

https://www.cryptopolitan.com/fbi-busts-70-million-crypto-laundering-service-run-by-a-russian/

https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmi/pr/fbi-disrupts-virtual-money-laundering-service-used-facilitate-criminal-activity

https://www.theregister.com/2025/12/18/e_note_takedown

https://www.cryptopolitan.com/europe-shuts-down-cryptomixer-25-m-bitcoin/