On September 26, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced that it is undertaking actions as part of a coordinated international effort to disrupt Russian cybercrime services. In line with this, FinCEN has issued an order that identifies PM2BTC as being of “primary money laundering concern” in connection with Russian illicit finance.
PM2BTC is a Russian virtual currency exchanger associated with Russian individual Sergey Sergeevich Ivanov (Ivanov). Concurrently, the OFAC has sanctioned Ivanov and Cryptex, a virtual currency exchange registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and operating in Russia. The FinCEN and OFAC actions are being issued in conjunction with actions by other U.S. government agencies and international law enforcement partners to hold accountable Ivanov and the associated virtual currency services.
The Treasury is taking action to protect U.S. national security and the integrity of the U.S. financial system. They are doing this by stopping illegal financial institutions from doing business in the U.S. This shows how the Treasury is using international cooperation and all available tools to fight against ransomware and target Russian illegal financial activity. The U.S. has urged the Russian government to take specific steps to stop cyber criminals from freely operating in Russia.
Read the Treasury’s press release here.