On 14 August, the US Department of State and Treasury announced sanctions against the Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex and its executives.
The US authorities also set a reward totalling six million dollars for information leading to the arrest of blacklisted individuals.
In a joint statement, the US agencies said Garantex is likely being used by cybercriminals to launder money.
The sanctions are also being imposed on Garantex’s successor firm Grinex, three Garantex executives and six related companies in Russia and Kyrgyzstan “that supported the exchange’s involvement in malicious cyber activities,” according to the statement.
Five million dollars of the six that US authorities are willing to pay for information on the whereabouts of sanctioned individuals is assigned to a man named Alexander Mir Serda. He is noted to have Russian and Ghanaian citizenship and is registered in St. Petersburg.