German Authorities Seize $37.4M in Assets from Shuttered Crypto Exchange eXch

By: decrypt|2025/05/09 20:45:03
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German Authorities Seize $37.4M in Assets from Shuttered Crypto Exchange eXch German prosecutors confiscate servers and digital assets from platform accused of laundering proceeds from major crypto hacks. In brief German prosecutors have announced the seizure of $37.4M (€34M) in cryptocurrency and hardware from eXch. The exchange allegedly facilitated money laundering from the Bybit hack and other significant thefts. On-chain investigators have accused eXch of processing "tens of millions of dollars" in stolen assets. Decrypt’s Art, Fashion, and Entertainment Hub. German authorities have seized servers and cryptocurrency valued at $37.4 million (€34 million) from eXch, a crypto exchange that prosecutors say operated without proper licenses and facilitated money laundering for North Korean threat actors linked to the Bybit hack in February. Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office, the Bundeskriminalamt (BKA) issued a statement on Friday alleging the platform processed transactions without implementing proper anti-money laundering controls, making it an attractive option for criminals seeking to obscure stolen funds. "Crypto swapping is an essential component of the underground economy, used to conceal incriminated funds from illegal activities," Dr. Benjamin Krause, chief public prosecutor at the German Central Office for Combating Cybercrime (ZIT), said in a translation of the statement. Those activities include "hacking or trading in stolen payment card data," and makes them "available to perpetrators," Krause explained. The confiscated items include crypto holdings, server hardware, and other types of digital infrastructure. The defunct exchange's services were "accessible on both the clearnet and the darknet," and were advertised on "platforms of the criminal underground economy," authorities noted. These developments come as Germany is slated to participate in the G7 summit , where North Korea's crypto hacks would reportedly be discussed. The exchange announced its closure last month after connections to multiple crypto thefts were revealed. However, blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs claimed it continued to operate . Lazarus links The now-defunct crypto exchange was used "to launder hundreds of millions from the Bybit hack, Multisig hack, FixedFloat exploit, $243M Genesis Creditor theft," pseudonymous blockchain investigator ZachXBT reported in Investigations, their Telegram channel. eXch was also involved in "countless phishing drainer services over the past few years with refusal to block addresses and freeze orders," ZachXBT claimed. In February, eXch faced mounting scrutiny after blockchain analytics firm Elliptic linked it to North Korea's notorious Lazarus Group and their involvement in the Bybit hack that resulted in over $1.4 billion in stolen funds. Elliptic and others, including ZachXBT, alleged eXch of processing "tens of millions of dollars" in stolen assets from the hack despite Bybit's requests to block it. A purported email response from eXch, archived on X and cited by Elliptic, claims the exchange chose not to acknowledge Bybit's requests. 5000 ETH stolen in Bybit hack is reportedly being laundered through eXch (a centralized mixer) and converted to Bitcoin via Chainflip. In response, Bybit requested eXch to block the funds and track their movement. However, eXch made this request public and refused to cooperate.... pic.twitter.com/i2DlAsm3Bi — LANGERIUS (@langeriuseth) February 23, 2025 At the time, eXch acknowledged in a statement to Decrypt that it did receive a request from Bybit to blacklist some addresses, though those were "a minor part of the total amount," eXch CEO Johann Roberts told Decrypt at the time. Decrypt has reached out to eXch for comment on the German authorities' actions and will update this article should we receive a response. Daily Debrief Newsletter

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Mixin has launched USTD-margined perpetual contracts, bringing derivative trading into the chat scene.

The privacy-focused crypto wallet Mixin announced today the launch of its U-based perpetual contract (a derivative priced in USDT). Unlike traditional exchanges, Mixin has taken a new approach by "liberating" derivative trading from isolated matching engines and embedding it into the instant messaging environment.


Users can directly open positions within the app with leverage of up to 200x, while sharing positions, discussing strategies, and copy trading within private communities. Trading, social interaction, and asset management are integrated into the same interface.


Simplified Trading Experience: No KYC Required, Opening a Position in Five Steps


Based on its non-custodial architecture, Mixin has eliminated friction from the traditional onboarding process, allowing users to participate in perpetual contract trading without identity verification.


The trading process has been streamlined into five steps:

· Choose the trading asset

· Select long or short

· Input position size and leverage

· Confirm order details

· Confirm and open the position


The interface provides real-time visualization of price, position, and profit and loss (PnL), allowing users to complete trades without switching between multiple modules.


Social-Native Trading: Strategy and Execution Completed in the Same Context


Mixin has directly integrated social features into the derivative trading environment. Users can create private trading communities and interact around real-time positions:

· End-to-end encrypted private groups supporting up to 1024 members

· End-to-end encrypted voice communication

· One-click position sharing

· One-click trade copying


On the execution side, Mixin aggregates liquidity from multiple sources and accesses decentralized protocol and external market liquidity through a unified trading interface.


By combining social interaction with trade execution, Mixin enables users to collaborate, share, and execute trading strategies instantly within the same environment.


Referral Mechanism: Non-institutional users can receive up to 60% fee split


Mixin has also introduced a referral incentive system based on trading behavior:

· Users can join with an invite code

· Up to 60% of trading fees as referral rewards

· Incentive mechanism designed for long-term, sustainable earnings


This model aims to drive user-driven network expansion and organic growth.


Self-Custody Architecture and Built-in Privacy Mechanism


Mixin's derivative transactions are built on top of its existing self-custody wallet infrastructure, with core features including:


· Separation of transaction account and asset storage

· User full control over assets

· Platform does not custody user funds

· Built-in privacy mechanisms to reduce data exposure


The system aims to strike a balance between transaction efficiency, asset security, and privacy protection.


A New Path for On-Chain Derivatives


Against the background of perpetual contracts becoming a mainstream trading tool, Mixin is exploring a different development direction by lowering barriers, enhancing social and privacy attributes.


The platform does not only view transactions as execution actions but positions them as a networked activity: transactions have social attributes, strategies can be shared, and relationships between individuals also become part of the financial system.


Regulatory Background


Mixin's design is based on a user-initiated, user-controlled model. The platform neither custodies assets nor executes transactions on behalf of users.


This model aligns with a statement issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on April 13, 2026, titled "Staff Statement on Whether Partial User Interface Used in Preparing Cryptocurrency Securities Transactions May Require Broker-Dealer Registration."


The statement indicates that, under the premise where transactions are entirely initiated and controlled by users, non-custodial service providers that offer neutral interfaces may not need to register as broker-dealers or exchanges.


About Mixin


Mixin is a decentralized, self-custodial privacy wallet designed to provide secure and efficient digital asset management services.


Its core capabilities include:

· Aggregation: integrating multi-chain assets and routing between different transaction paths to simplify user operations

· High liquidity access: connecting to various liquidity sources, including decentralized protocols and external markets

· Decentralization: achieving full user control over assets without relying on custodial intermediaries

· Privacy protection: safeguarding assets and data through MPC, CryptoNote, and end-to-end encrypted communication


Mixin has been in operation for over 8 years, supporting over 40 blockchains and more than 10,000 assets, with a global user base exceeding 10 million and an on-chain self-custodied asset scale of over $1 billion.


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