red 
- Elliptical data and intelligence used the US Secret Service in their investigation in sanctioned Russian cryptonurcy exchange of guarantors, resulting in abolition and freezing property, announced today.
- Elliptically developed ownership, leading industry techniques for the identification of the warrantex control – despite the efforts to cover its blockade activity. This provided valuable intelligence to investigators, as well as users of elliptical tools for screening.
- This paper reveals that the Garantex dealt with crypto transactions worth more than $ 60 billion because it was sanctioned in 2022. years. In total, Garantex crossed over $ 96 billion.
- Garantex is used in the sanctions of the Utaje Russian elites, as well as the park property for crime, including Ransomware, DarkNet trading and theft ascribed to Lazarus Group North Korea.
The American Ministry of Justice today announced the sturge of the Russian crypto-exchange of guarantorax, and the freezing of $ 26 million in cryptoascons.
Garantex was the first sanctioned by the US State Office for Foreign Assets (OFAC) in April 2022. Due to its role in the washing of funds from illegal sources, including DarkNet markets and purchase gangs. Garantex was also deceitful In enabling Russian oligarchs to move wealth from the country, after the invasion of Ukraine.
Despite these sanctions, Garantex continued to facilitate the cryptor worth a billion dollars each month. He continued to bloom in part due to guarantorx’s extensive efforts to cover up his own blocking activity.
Â
The content of sanctions in Kryptoascus includes ensuring that the transactions are not made with the blockchain address used by the sanctioned actor. Government agencies such as OFAC publish the addresses used by these actors – for example, the OFAC is stated Three cryptorureneration addresses for guarantor. However, exchanges such as guarantex can use hundreds of thousands if not millions of addresses, with new constant creating. Elliptical works on identifying these addresses and make them available through a projection tool used for compliance sanctions.
However, after sanction 2022, Garantex presented technology designed to overcome standard techniques used by BlockChaine Analytics address identification companies that use exchange. This is a strategy previously employed in other illegitimate actors, including the Alpacka Prknet market, and is a major obstacle to the implementation of the Entity Sanctions using Kryptoasca.
Garantex activity exposure
We worked on the Elliptik on the development of innovative, ownership techniques for identifying the Garantex addresses and enable our customers to identify and block transactions with this sanctioned actor. This paper also reveals new information on the exchange activity from the introduction of sanctions.
Elliptical analysis shows that the guarantees of the deception techniques enabled over $ 60 billion in crypto transactions, even after the sanctions collected in April 2022. year, the highest amounts of transactions on a stable center, on the throne block.
These figures should be considered a lower estimate, with work that are in progress to identify all the wallets used by the exchange.
Crime income
Our BlockChain Research Tool can be used to monitor the source and destination of funds from these impatient warranty wallets. This shows that Garantex continued to crash childbirth for crime. For example:
- CryptoAssets Stolen Lazarus Group North Korea was accompanied through Garantex. Transactions in the amount of over $ 30 million of $ 100 million Horizont Bridge was sent to Garantex in February 2023. years. Cryptocurrency stolen Lazarus groups suspect To be used to finance North Korea nuclear weapons.
A Screenshot from elliptical researcher, shows over $ 30 million stolen from the North Korea Lazarus Group Horizon Bridge, which is sent to Garantex in February 2023. Years. Not all transaction flows are displayed.
- Kryptoascese from different gangs for redemption cards, including the Conti, Lockbit and Black Basta, continued to be sent to Garantex because sanctions were sentenced. These groups all have strong ties for Russia.
Screenshot from elliptical researchers, showing funds from different Ransware groups sent to Garantex between 2022. and early 2024. years. Not all transaction flows are displayed.
- Garantex also passed tens of millions of dollars in Kryptoassi with dark markets, including Blacksprat, Solaris, Mega and OMG! Omg!.
Insids for law enforcement
Elliptic provided assistance in the form of data and intelligence in the Secret Service in the United States during its investigation, culminating in today’s indictment. Our unique data and analytical capabilities of BlockChain were important for providing visibility in the scale and nature of the Garantex activity, despite efforts to cover up these transactions. These information also provided the cryptoassets that GARTERX had worth a million dollars for frozen.
The recent BYBIT stealing of $ 1.5 billion illustrates the role that Rogue Crypto exchanges the game to laundering money for crime and allowing non-chariosis regimes. Today’s events show that these bad actors can overcome.
Support for compliance with sanctions
Our work on the identification of Hidden infrastructure with hidden cash legs entered Elliptical products for several years. Elliptical wallet and transaction projection solutions are used by exchanging cryptoturcy and other companies as a key part of their compliance programs with sanctions.
Our researchers begin to see other sanctioned actors using Garantex employees to cover up their blockchain activity, and will be a permanent technological run between sanctioned actors and those who want to determine their transactions.
Please Contact us To discuss how elliptic can help protect your business from exposure to sanctioned actors.
