US seizes domain of Garantex crypto exchange used by ransomware gangs

The U.S. Secret Service has seized the domain of the sanctioned Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex in collaboration with the Department of Justice's Criminal Division, the FBI, and Europol. Other law enforcement authorities involved in this action include the Dutch National Police, the German Federal Criminal Police Office, the Frankfurt General Prosecutor's Office, the Estonian National Criminal Police, and the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation. Earlier today, Garantex was also forced to suspend services due to Tether blocking its digital wallets after the European Union sanctioned the crypto exchange as part of its 16th package of sanctions against Russia, which targets 542 individuals and entities. "We have bad news. Tether entered the war against the Russian cryptographic market and blocked our wallets in the amount of more than 2.5 billion rubles," the Garantex team said in a Telegram post on Thursday. "We temporarily suspend the provision of all services, includi ... Read full article.