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| eXch Exchange |
Over €34 Million Seized as Authorities Target Illicit Crypto Activity
German law enforcement has shut down the eXch crypto exchange in a major anti-money laundering operation. Authorities seized over €34 million ($38 million) in digital assets and more than 8 terabytes of data. This marks one of the largest crypto enforcement actions in Germany to date.
The Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and Frankfurt Public Prosecutor’s Office coordinated the takedown on April 30. The action came just one day before eXch planned to shut down voluntarily.
eXch allegedly laundered hundreds of millions in stolen crypto assets.
The exchange is linked to the $1.5 billion Bybit hack, $243 million Genesis creditor theft, and various phishing drainer campaigns.
Investigators say eXch openly advertised on darknet forums as a fully anonymous crypto-swapping service. It operated with no AML (Anti-Money Laundering) compliance or KYC (Know Your Customer) checks.
Launched in 2014 via domains like eXch(dot)cx, the platform supported BTC, ETH, LTC, and DASH. It processed more than $1.9 billion in digital assets, a large portion tied to illicit use.
eXch's refusal to follow AML laws made it a top enforcement target.
Its complete lack of user identification protocols allowed criminals to mask financial transactions.
This takedown follows recent European crackdowns on services like ChipMixer, Sinbad, and Hydra. Regulatory bodies are stepping up their fight against crypto-fueled crime across Europe.