The European authorities have dismantled a large money laundering network nicknamed the “Crypto Bank mafia”, arresting 17 people accused of whitening of more than 21 million euros ($ 23.5 million) in cryptocurrency for criminal groups linked to China and the Middle East.
According to Europol’s declaration on May 14, the criminal network facilitated money laundering for organizations involved in the smuggling of migrants and drug trafficking.
The group has operated a parallel banking system using the informal method of Hawala, frequently adjusting transactions in cryptocurrency to obscure the origin of the funds.
Spain conducts the arrests of January 2025 in crime crime cross -border
The Spanish police forces, leading to the investigation, revealed that the arrests had taken place in January 2025 in Spain, Austria and Belgium.
Fifteen suspects were apprehended in Spain, with an arrest each in Austria and Belgium.
Most of the people arrested were of Chinese and Syrian origin, targeting criminal customers in China and by the Arabic -speaking regions.
The authorities have entered a total of 4.5 million euros ($ 5 million) in assets, including € 183,000 ($ 205,000) in Crypto, € 421,000 ($ 471,000) in cash from 77 bank accounts and luxury products worth € 876,000 ($ 980,000).
Confiscked items also included 18 vehicles, four hunting rifles, design handbags, watches, cigars and various electronic devices.
Fifteen of the 17 suspects have already been detained as the main key figures in the organization.
The authorities arrested 17 criminal bankers, 4.5 million euros
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Europol announced on May 14 that law enforcement organizations had dismantled a sophisticated criminal parallel banking network operating in several European countries.
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– Cyber Security News (@The_cyber_News) May 15, 2025
The authorities arrested 17 criminal bankers, 4.5 million euros The group would have masked its operations under the cover of a fund transfer company, even by promoting its illicit services on social media platforms.
The investigation was carried out by a court in Almería, Spain, with the coordination of Belgian officials and the support of Europol. More than 250 officers were involved in the operation.
Repression highlights an increasing concern concerning the role of crypto in transnational crime.
The chainalysis blockchain analysis company said that illegal crypto transactions reached $ 51.3 billion in 2024, an increase of 11.3% compared to the previous year.
Crypto Hacks increased in 2025 while losses exceeds $ 1.74 billion in four months
The pirates stole more than $ 92.4 million in crypto projects in April 2025 only, according to the security company Blockchain Immunefi.
The figure represents an increase of 27.3% in annual sliding and more than double the losses reported in March.
The April attacks took place on 15 incidents, two major exploits representing most of the damage.
The UPCX, an open source platform, lost $ 70 million in a single attack, while the decentralized Kiloex scholarship was affected for $ 7.5 million.
The other affected projects included loopscale, Zksync, Term Labs and Bitcoin Mission, each undergoing losses greater than $ 1 million.
Cumulatively, the first four months of 2025 have already experienced $ 1.74 billion in cryptographic losses – more than 2024, which totaled $ 1.49 billion.
Immunefi previously noted that the first quarter of 2025 was the worst quarter for hacks in the history of the crypto, largely driven by massive violations of centralized exchanges Phemex and Bybit.
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