A Ukrainian court has authorized the transfer of virtual assets seized during a major fraud and illegal gambling investigation, to the country’s National Agency for Asset Recovery and Management (ARMA), according to a court ruling in local dialect.
The move marks a significant development in Ukraine’s efforts to combat large-scale crypto-based money laundering schemes tied to unauthorized online casinos.
The order, issued by the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv, concerns digital wallets registered on the cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
The accounts, belonging to a Ukrainian national identified in court documents as ОСОБА_6, were allegedly used to launder funds obtained through illegal online gambling platforms, including “rollbit.com” and other web-based casino sites operating without state licenses.
Investigators from Ukraine’s Cyberpolice and National Police allege that a group of unidentified individuals lured citizens into depositing funds into fraudulent investment platforms such as “binomo.com,” which authorities say simulated forex and crypto trading to deceive users.
The platforms promised high returns, only to siphon off deposits via rigged algorithms. Victims reportedly received no real returns, while the operators funneled around 70% of each deposit into private crypto wallets.
Using blockchain analytics tools such as Chainalysis, authorities traced substantial sums from the alleged fraud to wallets associated with the Binance accounts.
These assets include a wide range of cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Solana, and Tether (USDT), distributed across multiple sub-accounts linked to the main Binance user ID.
The total amount seized, denominated in various cryptocurrencies, surpasses UAH 500 million, well beyond the threshold requiring state oversight under Ukrainian law.
The court found sufficient legal grounds to designate the assets as evidence in the criminal case and ordered their transfer to ARMA, which is tasked with preserving and potentially liquidating seized assets to recover value for the state.
The court’s decision also obligates Binance, registered under Nest Services Limited in Seychelles, to execute the transfer and cooperate with Ukrainian authorities.
ARMA is expected to sell the assets through official electronic auction platforms, in line with its mandate to manage seized property and return value to the national budget.
The broader criminal probe, opened in early 2022, remains ongoing. It includes allegations of fraud, money laundering, and violations of Ukraine’s gambling ban, with potential links to organized cybercrime networks using decentralized finance platforms to obscure fund flows.