Financial regulators in Germany have shut down ChipMixer. It was a platform where investors can make anonymous cryptocurrency transactions and wash their reserves.
Local media outlets have reported that the authorities in Berlin, Germany have closed down ChipMixer charged as being one of the largest money laundering sites in the world. During this siege, the authorities confiscated millions of euros worth of Bitcoin.
The report by Federal Criminal Police Office and the prosecution office in Frankfurt has revealed to the media that the government has collected 44 million euro worth of digital currencies. This amount can be viewed as $46 million that was under the use of various cryptocurrency investors who were associated with ChipMixer.
It is important to note that a mixer or washing site is the type of platform where users can make transactions by exchanging or swapping their funds without revealing their sources or personal data.
German Authorities are Working Alongside United States and Europol Regulators to Take Down ChipMixer
The media reports have revealed that law enforcement agencies were working with the United States and Europol to investigate ChipMixer. Law enforcement agents in Germany have also revealed that they have uncovered some links with darknet sites via servers.
These servers are now under the custody of international law enforcement agencies. The operators and users of ChipMixer are charged with conducting money laundering for commercial entities.
The authorities of Germany have also informed the media that this site was backing illegal trading platforms online. The operators of the site have accepted Bitcoin in the illegal form from various sites that they washed to wipe out their ambiguous origins.
ChipMixer also offered a perfect anonymity warranty to its users as per investigators. It has been operational since 2017 and thus far has laundered around 154K Bitcoins. At the current price, the value of this Bitcoin is around 2.8 billion euros.
ChipMixer was offering services to hackers and other threat actors that were collecting cryptocurrencies using ransomware attacks
The investigators have told media that ChipMixer was facilitating criminals in washing the stolen cryptocurrencies that they have collected from ransomware attacks.
In addition, the authorities have also suspected the mixer to offer services to other black money owners who were trying to get away with legal scrutiny. Last year, various state agencies took out Hydra which was another transaction anonymity site and trading platform.
It is worth noting that much like ChipMixer, Hydra was also operating on the darknet and it was away from the reach of regular cryptocurrency investors. Such sites have been accessible to high net worth clients only that have big stakes and big enough amounts to afford the hefty operational fees of these services.
Investigators told media that Hydra was also involved in washing millions worth of cryptocurrencies that were found on ChipMixer.
All trademarks, logos, and images displayed on this site belong to their respective owners and have been utilized under the Fair Use Act. The materials on this site should not be interpreted as financial advice. When we incorporate content from other sites, we ensure each author receives proper attribution by providing a link to the original content. This site might maintain financial affiliations with a selection of the brands and firms mentioned herein. As a result, we may receive compensation if our readers opt to click on these links within our content and subsequently register for the products or services on offer. However, we neither represent nor endorse these services, brands, or companies. Therefore, any disputes that may arise with the mentioned brands or companies need to be directly addressed with the respective parties involved. We urge our readers to exercise their own judgement when clicking on links within our content and ultimately signing up for any products or services. The responsibility lies solely with them. Please read our full disclaimer and terms of use policy here.