Cryptocurrency Exchange eXch to Shut Down on May 1 Due to Money Laundering Charges

On April 18th, according to Cointelegraph's report, the cryptocurrency exchange eXch declared that it would stop its operations on May 1st. Prior reports indicated that the platform was employed to launder a portion of the stolen funds from the Bybit exchange. In an announcement on April 17th, eXch stated that the majority of its management team voted to "cease operations and exit" in response to the allegations that the North Korean hacker group Lazarus Group used the platform to launder approximately $35 million, which originated from the $1.4 billion hack of Bybit. The exchange claimed to have become a target of a "Transatlantic Joint Law Enforcement Operation" aiming to shut down its operations and potentially bring criminal charges. The exchange initially refuted the accusations of the Blockchain analysis firm regarding helping the Lazarus Group launder money but admitted to handling a "minimal portion of funds" from the February hack incident.