- German police seized $38M in crypto from eXch linked to the Bybit hack.
- eXch allegedly laundered part of the $1.4B stolen from Bybit.
German law enforcement has confiscated €34 million ($38 million) in cryptocurrency from eXch, a crypto-swapping platform tied to the $1.4 billion Bybit hack. Authorities announced the seizure on May 9, calling it the third-largest crypto confiscation in Germany’s history.
The Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and Frankfurt’s prosecutor’s office led the joint operation. They also seized over eight terabytes of data from eXch’s German servers. This action effectively shut down the platform’s local operations.
Authorities linked eXch to laundering a large share of the stolen Bybit funds. The hack, which occurred on February 21, 2025, saw $1.46 billion in ETH stolen. Investigators said the North Korean Lazarus Group used eXch to launder over 5,000 ETH.
How eXch Became a Hub for Crypto Crime
Launched in 2014, eXch operated without anti-money laundering (AML) measures. It allowed users to swap crypto across blockchains without identity checks. This attracted criminals seeking to obfuscate fund origins using token hopping, bridges, and multiple wallets.
According to the BKA, eXch processed around $1.9 billion in crypto transactions. Much of it is believed to stem from criminal activities, including phishing scams and major exchange hacks. Assets seized included Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Dash (DASH).
Crypto analyst ZachXBT confirmed eXch’s role in laundering funds from several high-profile incidents. These include the $243 million Genesis creditor theft, multisig wallet exploits, and FixedFloat-related hacks. ZachXBT said the platform ignored freeze orders and warnings.
Despite its denial, eXch was actively used after its reported shutdown. In mid-April, it claimed it would cease operations by May 1. Yet blockchain analytics from TRM Labs revealed its API backend remained live. This allowed continued laundering activity.
TRM also tied eXch to over $300,000 in funds linked to child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The platform’s design made it nearly impossible to trace criminal flows. This raised major concerns among global enforcement agencies.
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