The US has declared rewards of up to six million dollars for this information that can lead to finding and arresting the leaders of the Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex and their conviction.
This week, the exchange, which had been accused of laundering criminal proceeds and aiding in circumventing international sanctions, was closed down in a coordinated U.S.-led enforcement initiative earlier this year.
The U.S. government noted that Garantex made transactions related to cybercrime, ransomware, terror, and drug trafficking. From April 2019 to March 2025, the platform reportedly handled more than $96 billion worth of cryptocurrency transactions.
U.S. Increases Pressure on Garantex Leadership
The U.S. Departments of State and Treasury have heightened efforts against the individuals linked to Garantex. The Department’s Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program recently increased the reward to as much as $5 million on a charge to Garantex sales manager Aleksandr Mira Serda, aka Aleksandr Ntifo-Siaw. Another 1 million is provided to other major persons active in running the exchange.
The Treasury Department, through its Office of Foreign Assets Control, has listed Sergey Mendeleev as a co-founder of Garantex on the sanctions list. The U.S. has also frozen his property in the U.S., and U.S. citizens are prohibited from conducting business with him.
Garantex Operations Linked to Criminal Activity
According to Garantex, the FBI and Secret Service, U.S., allege that Garantex received hundreds of millions of dollars linked to criminal activity. Authorities say criminal networks and other networks used the platform to transfer funds around the world so as to go undetected and facilitate illegal activities.
In March 2025, the FBI, Secret Service, and Europol seized the Garantex website and $26 million in USDT associated with the exchange. Its administrators were charged criminally for their individual roles in money laundering.
Co-Founder Denies Current Involvement
Sergey Mendeleev reacted against sanctions and pleaded not to be involved with Garantex recently. Talking to the Russian outlet Bits. Media, he said, he had ended relations with the exchange five years ago. Mendeleev explained that sanctions were what the U.S. would be closing so that it would not affect his present operations.
He also disassociated himself with other organizations that were sanctioned together with Garantex, such as Grinex, A7, Exved, and Indefi Smartbank. Mendeleev claimed that there are always those firms that are only formal and do not conflict with actual practice.
