US and Allies Seize Russian Crypto Giant Garantex

The U.S. Secret Service, in coordination with international law enforcement partners, officially seized the website and domains of Moscow-based cryptocurrency exchange Garantex on Thursday due to its alleged facilitation of darknet markets and ransomware operations.

Visitors attempting to access the platform were met with a seizure banner indicating that the domains had been confiscated pursuant to a warrant issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Global Crackdown on Russian Crypto Hub

This coordinated action represents the latest escalation by Western authorities targeting the Moscow-headquartered platform. Just last month, the European Union imposed sanctions on Garantex, stating that the exchange is “closely associated with EU-sanctioned Russian banks” as part of its 16th sanctions package aimed at degrading Russia’s financial workarounds.

A History of Sanctions and Illicit Transactions

Prior to the EU’s actions, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned Garantex in 2022. Federal authorities alleged at the time that over $100 million in transactions processed by the platform were directly linked to illicit actors, darknet marketplaces, the notorious Russian ransomware syndicate Conti, and the now-defunct Hydra market.

Secret Service spokesperson Nate Herring confirmed the enforcement action, stating that the agency “seized website domains associated with the administration and operation of Russian cryptocurrency exchange, Garantex as part of an ongoing investigation.” Herring declined to elaborate further on the active probe.

Inside the Multi-Agency Takedown

The seizure notice details a massive international effort. The operation was executed in tandem with the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI, Europol, the Dutch National Police, Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), the Frankfurt General Prosecutor’s Office, the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation, and the Estonian National Criminal Police.

While federal and international agencies were contacted for comment, only the FBI responded, declining to provide additional details. Queries sent to Garantex via their listed corporate email addresses and Telegram channels prior to the domain seizure went unanswered.

Technical analysis of Garantex’s domain records confirms the seizure. The exchange’s web domains now point directly to servers managed by the U.S. Secret Service—the same infrastructure previously used to host domain seizure notices for other high-profile law enforcement operations.

Garantex Halts Services as Tether Freezes Millions

Despite the disruption, Garantex made no initial mention of the law enforcement raid on its public communication channels. However, the exchange later announced a complete suspension of its operations, including all cryptocurrency withdrawals.

This operational halt followed a decisive move by stablecoin issuer Tether, which froze approximately $28 million worth of USDT held on the platform.

In a message to its users, Garantex acknowledged the crisis, stating, “We have bad news. We are fighting and will not give up! Please note that all [Tether] in Russian wallets is currently under threat.”