German law enforcement has dismantled the cryptocurrency exchange eXch, seizing €34 million ($37.4M–$38M) in digital assets and 8TB of server data in a coordinated operation targeting alleged money laundering activities. The Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and Frankfurt Prosecutor’s Office executed the takedown on April 30, 2025, one day before the platform’s planned voluntary shutdown1. The exchange, operational since 2014, processed $1.9 billion in transactions, primarily linked to the laundering of funds from high-profile cybercrimes including the $1.5 billion Bybit hack attributed to North Korea’s Lazarus Group2.
Operational Details and Forensic Evidence
The BKA’s seizure included Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Dash (DASH) stored across multiple wallets, alongside critical server infrastructure hosting transaction logs and user session data. Forensic analysis revealed persistent UUID session tokens (e.g., a9b60436-d62b-4e8c-88c1-e1e2ce0cf607) stored in local storage, enabling authorities to trace individual users to specific illicit transactions3. Investigators also identified cross-chain obfuscation techniques, particularly ETH-to-Monero bridging, used to obscure fund trails4.
Dutch police provided supplementary intelligence, including IP logs connecting eXch to darknet marketplaces. The platform operated without Anti-Money Laundering (AML) or Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, advertising its services on underground forums as a privacy-focused solution for anonymous swaps via Chainflip bridges5.
Regulatory and Historical Context
eXch violated multiple EU financial regulations, including the Payment Services Directive (PSD2) and Electronic Money Directive, by operating without licenses6. The seizure aligns with Germany’s 2024 crackdown on 47 unlicensed exchanges and mirrors global actions such as Japan’s mandatory Financial Services Agency (FSA) licensing regime7. Historical parallels include the 2014 collapse of Mt. Gox and the 2022 FTX bankruptcy, both highlighting systemic risks in unregulated crypto platforms8, 9.
Technical Findings and Implications
Forensic teams extracted widget-session IDs from server logs, revealing attempts to anonymize transactions. The seized infrastructure contained direct links to Lazarus Group wallets, corroborating blockchain analysis by firms like Elliptic10. The operation underscores the EU’s intensified focus on privacy-centric platforms facilitating cybercrime, following earlier actions against Bitcoin ATMs and unlicensed exchanges.
Relevance to Security Professionals
The case demonstrates the forensic value of server-side session data in tracing illicit crypto flows. Security teams should monitor for:
- UUID-based session tracking in local storage
- Cross-chain bridging patterns (e.g., ETH-to-XMR)
- Darknet forum mentions of unlicensed exchanges
For threat intelligence units, the Lazarus Group’s continued use of unregulated exchanges highlights the need for blockchain analytics integration into SIEM platforms. The BKA’s collaboration with Dutch authorities also illustrates the importance of cross-jurisdictional data sharing in combating cyber-enabled financial crime.
Conclusion
The eXch takedown represents a significant milestone in EU efforts to regulate cryptocurrency markets and combat cybercrime proceeds laundering. The forensic methodologies employed—particularly UUID tracking and cross-chain analysis—provide a template for future investigations. However, the persistence of unlicensed platforms suggests ongoing challenges in enforcing global crypto compliance frameworks.
References
- “German cops seize $34 million of crypto assets in eXch swoop,” Bloomberg, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-09/german-cops-seize-34-million-of-crypto-assets-in-exch-swoop
- “Bybit $1.4B hack: 88% traceable to Lazarus Group,” CoinTelegraph, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://cointelegraph.com/news/bybit-1-4b-hack-88-percent-traceable-lazarus-group
- “German authorities seize $37.4M in assets from shuttered crypto exchange eXch,” Decrypt, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://decrypt.co/318765/german-authorities-seize-37-4m-in-assets-from-shuttered-crypto-exchange-exch
- BKA press release, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.presseportal.de/blaulicht/pm/7/6029813
- “Germany shuts down Bybit hack-linked eXch, $38 million in Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin seized,” CoinGape, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://coingape.com/germany-shuts-down-bybit-hack-linked-exch-38-million-in-bitcoin-ether-litecoin-seized
- “Payment Services Directive (PSD2),” Wikipedia. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Payment_Services_Directive
- “Japanese regulator warns cryptocurrency exchange for operating without license,” CNBC, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/23/japanese-regulator-warns-major-cryptocurrency-exchange-for-operating-without-a-license-bitcoin-falls.html
- “Mt. Gox files for bankruptcy,” The New York Times, 2014. [Online]. Available: https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/28/mt-gox-files-for-bankruptcy/
- “FTX files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy,” The Wall Street Journal, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.wsj.com/articles/ftx-files-for-chapter-11-bankruptcy-11668176869
- “Bybit funds on the move could be headed for Bitcoin mixers next: Elliptic,” Decrypt, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://decrypt.co/307430/bybit-funds-on-the-move-could-be-headed-for-bitcoin-mixers-next-elliptic
