The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) designated Bitzlato, a Hong Kong-registered cryptocurrency exchange, as a “primary money laundering concern” in the first use of a law that targets entities that facilitate illicit Russian financial transactions.
FinCEN announced Wednesday that Bitzlato “plays a critical role in laundering convertible virtual currency (CVC) by facilitating illicit transactions for ransomware actors operating in Russia, including Conti, a ransomware-as-a-service group that has links to the government of Russia.” A multinational law enforcement effort shut down Bitzlato and seized its assets, officials said.
