March 7 (UPI) — Working with Germany and Finland, U.S. officials disrupted and took down the online infrastructure used to operate Garantex, a cryptocurrency exchange that allegedly facilitated money laundering by transnational criminal organizations.
Those organizations included terrorist groups, according to U.S. Justice Department officials, who made the announcement in a press release on Friday.
An indictment unsealed in the Eastern District of Virginia leveled charges against Aleksej Besciokov, 46, a Lithuanian national and Russian resident, and Aleksandr Mira Serda (also known as Aleksandr Ntifo-Siaw), 40, a Russian national and United Arab Emirates resident, according to Justice officials.
According to the indictment, Garantex has processed at least $96 billion in cryptocurrency transactions since April 2019.
In the release, Justice officials said Mira Serda and Besciokov are charged with money laundering conspiracy, and Besciokov is charged with conspiracy to violate sanctions and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business.
Garantex was run by Mira Serda and Besciokov from 2019 to 2015, according to Justice officials. Authorities said Besciokov was Garantex’s main technical administrator and responsible for maintaining critical Garantex infrastructure, as well as reviewing and approving transactions. Officials say Mira Serda was Garantex’s co-founder and chief commercial officer.
U.S. officials say the crypto exchange Garantex received hundreds of millions in criminal funding and was used to “facilitate various crimes, including hacking, ransomware, terrorism, and drug trafficking, often with substantial impact to U.S. victims.”
Besciokov and Mira Serda knew that the exchange was facilitating crimes, Justice officials said, adding that Garantex took steps to conceal the facilitation of illegal activities, such as money laundering, on its platform.
According to Friday’s release from the Justice Department, in April 2022 the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Garantex for its role in facilitating money laundering of funds from ransomware actors and so-called darknet markets.
According to court documents cited in Friday’s release, “despite the widespread publicity of the sanctions and Garantex administrator’s personal knowledge of them, Besciokov and his co-conspirators violated those sanctions by continuing to transact with U.S.-based entities.
“Further, Besciokov and his co-conspirators redesigned Garantex’s operations to evade and violate U.S. sanctions and induce U.S. businesses to unwittingly transact with Garantex in violation of the sanctions,” Justice officials said.
As an example of attempts at evasion, Justice officials said Garantex allegedly moved its operational cryptocurrency wallets to different virtual currency addresses on a daily basis “in order to make it difficult for U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchanges to identify and block transactions with Garantex accounts.”
Additionally and despite doing a notable amount of business in the United States and operating as a money transmitting business, Garantex failed to register with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network as required, Justice officials said.
The U.S. Justice Department said that, on March 6, U.S. law enforcement executed a seizure order authorized by a judge in the Eastern District of Virginia against three website domain names used to support Garantex’s operations: Garantex.org, Garantex.io, and Garantex.academy.
According to officials, the seizure will prevent the sites from being used for money laundering and any other crimes. Individuals who go to those sites now see a message indicating that the site has been seized by law enforcement.
Additionally, officials said Friday that German and Finnish law enforcement also seized servers hosting Garantex’s operations. U.S. law authorities, according to the Justice Department, have separately obtained earlier copies of Garantex’s servers, including customer and accounting databases. More than $26 million in funds used to facilitate Garantex’s money laundering activities have been frozen, U.S. officials said.
If convicted, Besciokov and Mira Serda face decades behind bars.
Next big cryptocurrency Why Pepenode is climbing 2025 watchlists
Markets are hunting for the next big cryptocurrency-a project that can punch above its weight with real usage, credible shipping, and a clear value story. On those counts, Pepenode (https://pepenode.io/) is starting to look like more than just a momentum play. The combination of consumer-friendly design and a builder-first roadmap has traders and developers keeping it on their dashboards as 2025 gets underway.
Why 2025 favors execution over hype
Every cycle begins with narratives, but it sustains on delivery. This year, the tokens that hold gains are the ones that keep reducing friction: faster confirmations, lower fees at peak, and simpler onboarding for non-experts. Liquidity still matters, but user growth and developer activity are now the tie-breakers. In that environment, the next big cryptocurrency isn’t just the loudest; it’s the asset that can scale quietly while everyone else argues on social.
Pepenode the emerging thesis
Pepenode has momentum because its story is straightforward: make everyday on-chain actions feel instant and intuitive, then give builders primitives that don’t fight them. The emphasis is on smooth paths from wallet to app, sane costs when activity spikes, and tooling that shortens the distance between idea and production. That’s a different angle from the “be everything to everyone” platforms that sprawl in complexity and stall adoption.
The token’s narrative also benefits from portable demand-if Pepenode apps are genuinely snappy and fun, usage becomes its own marketing loop. That’s how smaller caps graduate into serious contenders. The caveat is familiar: delivery has to match the storyline. A consistent cadence of releases and partnerships would be the catalyst that turns watchlist curiosity into durable allocation.
Large-cap context for balance
No discussion of the next big cryptocurrency should ignore the blue chips that anchor risk. Ethereum (https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/ethereum/) remains the base layer for a massive share of DeFi, NFTs, and enterprise pilots, with Layer-2s extending reach to mainstream use cases. Solana (https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/solana) has become the default venue for high-throughput consumer apps where speed and fees shape user behavior.
Cardano continues its methodical, research heavy path that appeals to long-horizon holders who prefer predictable upgrades. Dogecoin, despite (or because of) its culture, still acts as a barometer for retail attention and can front-run shifts in risk appetite. Together, these establish a framework where Pepenode can play the role of targeted growth without forcing investors to abandon depth and liquidity.
How a portfolio might include Pepenode
Positioning Pepenode (https://pepenode.io/) doesn’t require an all-or-nothing bet. A pragmatic structure is to hold a core basket of large caps for resilience and let Pepenode express upside in a defined satellite sleeve. That sleeve can expand temporarily when clear catalysts land-feature launches, integrations, or distribution milestones – and then normalize after the event window. This avoids the whipsaw of chasing every headline while still letting you participate when the project earns fresh attention.
Sizing is your shock absorber. Higher-volatility assets deserve smaller allocations and wider invalidation levels, while liquid majors can shoulder larger weights. Stagger entries to improve average price and pre-commit to partial profit-taking into strength so your cost basis improves even if you’re early. When the thesis changes-if shipping slows, roadmaps drift, or user metrics stall-downgrade quickly and reallocate. Discipline turns a promising narrative into repeatable outcomes.
Risks and what to watch
Liquidity risk is real for any emerging contender. Model slippage realistically and assume spreads widen during stress. Narrative decay is another trap; projects that pivot endlessly burn trust, so monitor whether Pepenode’s updates stay focused and user-oriented. Finally, remember time horizon fit. If your thesis is product – market fit over quarters, don’t force short-term trades to “prove” it. Let data-not recency bias-decide whether Pepenode is behaving like the next big cryptocurrency or just the next headline.
Bottom line
The market’s definition of the next big cryptocurrency is maturing: sustained utility, fast and friendly user experiences, and builder momentum now carry more weight than slogans. Pepenode (https://pepenode.io/) checks enough of those boxes to justify a real spot on 2025 watchlists, especially when paired with a balanced core of Ethereum, Solana, Cardano, and Dogecoin. If execution keeps pace with ambition, Pepenode could move from candidate to category – just remember to let your sizing, rules, and time horizon do the heavy lifting. This is not financial advice; always do your own research and allocate within your risk tolerance.
Buchenweg 15, Karlsruhe, Germany
For more information about Pepenode (PEPENODE) visit the links below:
Website: https://pepenode.io/
Whitepaper: https://pepenode.io/assets/documents/whitepaper.pdf
Telegram: https://t.me/pepe_node
Twitter/X: https://x.com/pepenode_io
Disclosure: Crypto is a high-risk asset class. This article is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute investment advice.
CryptoTimes24 is a digital media and analytics platform dedicated to providing timely, accurate, and insightful information about the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry. The enterprise focuses on delivering high-quality news coverage, market analysis, project reviews, and educational resources for both investors and enthusiasts. By combining data-driven journalism with expert commentary, CryptoTimes24 aims to become a trusted global source for emerging trends in decentralized finance (DeFi), NFTs, Web3 technologies, and digital asset markets.
This release was published on openPR.
Galaxy Digital executed a $9 billion Bitcoin sale for a Satoshi-era investor in July 2025, one of the largest crypto exits to date. This event signals a new era, as early Bitcoin adopters distribute coins to meet rising institutional demand without disrupting the market.
This ongoing shift marks Bitcoin’s transition into a more mature and stable market. Institutional capital now dominates, as on-chain data shows dormant wallets reactivating throughout 2025. The asset’s evolution from speculative play to global financial infrastructure continues to accelerate.
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Bitcoin’s current consolidation resembles the post-IPO stages in traditional equities, where early backers gradually exit as institutions enter.
In a Subtack post, Jeff Park, an advisor at Bitwise, describes this as a “silent IPO,” which lets original holders distribute Bitcoin through ETF infrastructure. Unlike previous downturns shaped by regulation or failures, today’s distribution happens under strong macro conditions and growing institutional interest.
On-chain data reflects the trend. Dormant wallets that were inactive for years began moving coins in mid-2025. For example, in October 2025, a wallet that had been inactive for three years transferred $694 million in Bitcoin, highlighting broader wallet reactivations during the year.
Blockchain analytics firm Bitquery also tracked numerous wallets that had been dormant for over a decade, becoming active in 2024 and 2025.
Crucially, this distribution is patient, not panic-driven. Sellers target high-liquidity windows and institutional partners to minimize price impact.
The Galaxy Digital transaction demonstrates this approach, where over 80,000 Bitcoin were moved during estate planning for an early investor, all without destabilizing the market.
Historically, such consolidation phases in traditional finance last six to 18 months. Companies like Amazon and Google experienced similar periods after their IPOs, as founders and venture investors made room for long-term institutional investors.
Bitcoin’s ongoing consolidation since early 2025 signals a comparable shift from retail pioneers to professional asset managers.
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This handoff from early holders to institutions relies heavily on the expansion of ETF infrastructure. Since the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in early 2024, institutional inflows have surged.
CoinShares research reported that as of Q4 2024, investors managing over $100 million collectively held $27.4 billion in Bitcoin ETFs, a 114% quarterly gain. Institutional investors accounted for 26.3% of Bitcoin ETF assets, up from 21.1% the prior quarter.
North American crypto adoption increased by 49% in 2025, driven primarily by institutional demand and the introduction of new ETF products, according to Chainalysis. This growth ties directly to the accessibility of spot ETFs, a familiar option for cautious investors.
Still, market penetration remains early. River’s Bitcoin Adoption Report reveals that only 225 of over 30,000 global hedge funds held Bitcoin ETFs in early 2025, with an average allocation of just 0.2%.
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This gap between interest and allocation demonstrates how institutional integration is just beginning. Still, the trend remains upward. Galaxy Digital ended Q2 2025 with roughly $9 billion in combined assets under management and stake, a 27% quarterly increase—thanks in part to rising crypto prices and the record-setting Bitcoin sale. Its digital assets division delivered $318 million in adjusted gross profit, and trading volumes jumped 140%, as detailed in Galaxy’s Q2 2025 financial results.
The crypto lending ecosystem also expanded. According to Galaxy’s leverage research, Q2 2025 saw $11.43 billion in growth, bringing total crypto-collateralized lending to $53.09 billion.
This 27.44% quarterly rise signals strong demand for institutional-grade infrastructure that supports large transactions and wealth strategies.
The logic behind early holder exits goes beyond profit-taking. Hunter Horsley, CEO of Bitwise, highlights that early Bitcoin investors remain bullish but prioritize psychological risk management after life-changing gains.
On X (Twitter), he explained that many clients aim to preserve their wealth while keeping some long-term Bitcoin exposure.
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Strategies include swapping spot Bitcoin for ETFs to gain custodial peace of mind, or borrowing from private banks without selling.
Others write call options for income and set price targets for partial liquidations. These approaches signal smart wealth management and continued potential upside, not pessimism.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas confirmed on X that original holders are selling actual Bitcoin, not just ETF shares. He likened these early risk-takers to “The Big Short” investors, who were first to spot opportunities and are now reaping the rewards.
As institutional ownership expands, Bitcoin’s volatility is projected to decrease, thanks to a broader distribution across pension funds and investment advisors.
This supports greater market stability and draws additional conservative capital. As a result, Bitcoin continues to shift from a speculative asset to a foundational monetary tool in global finance.
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