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US Shuts Down Crypto Exchange E-Note and Charges Russian Operator

The Justice Department says authorities disrupted E-Note’s infrastructure and charged its alleged operator with conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. The case remains an allegation, not a conviction.
From TheFinanceBase Team2 min to read

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U.S. authorities announced on December 17, 2025, that they had disrupted infrastructure used to operate E-Note, a cryptocurrency exchange, and seized its servers, mobile applications and three associated domains. The Justice Department also announced an indictment charging Russian national Mykhalio Petrovich Chudnovets with one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. The allegations have not been established in court.

What happened to E-Note?

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan said U.S. authorities, international partners and Michigan State Police took down online infrastructure used to operate E-Note. Authorities seized servers hosting the operations, mobile applications and the domains e-note.com, e-note.ws and jabb.mn. The Justice Department’s announcement also says U.S. law enforcement had separately obtained earlier copies of servers, including customer databases and transaction records.

The distinction matters: the announced operation disrupted live infrastructure, while the earlier server copies provided law enforcement with records. The release does not describe the status of any customer funds or say what will happen to them.

Who is charged, and what is the allegation?

The indictment, unsealed in the Eastern District of Michigan, charges Mykhalio Petrovich Chudnovets, whom the Justice Department describes as a 39-year-old Russian national, with one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. The department says court documents allege that he began offering money-laundering services to cybercriminals in 2010 and controlled and operated E-Note until the seizure.

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Prosecutors allege E-Note helped financially motivated cybercriminals move proceeds across international borders and convert cryptocurrency into cash currencies. The Justice Department says the alleged activity involved transnational cybercriminal organizations, including groups targeting U.S. healthcare and critical infrastructure.

An indictment is an accusation, not a conviction. The Justice Department stated in its December 17, 2025 announcement: “An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.” The announcement does not establish a conviction or provide a later case outcome.

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What does the $70 million figure mean?

The FBI identified more than $70 million in illicit proceeds from ransomware attacks and account takeovers that, according to the Justice Department’s summary, transferred through the E-Note payment service and money-mule network since 2017. This is an FBI investigative figure reported by the Justice Department in 2025, tied to those categories and channels. It is not presented as E-Note’s total transaction volume or as a finding by a court.

What penalty does the charge carry?

The Justice Department says the charged conspiracy count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. That is the statutory maximum stated in the announcement, not a sentence imposed or a prediction of the outcome.

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Who investigated the case, and where can potential victims turn?

The Justice Department credited the German Federal Criminal Police Office, Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation and the Michigan State Police Michigan Cyber Command Center (MC3) for their cooperation. It said the FBI Detroit Cyber Task Force is investigating and named Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Wyse as prosecutor.

The announcement directs anyone who believes their funds were laundered through Chudnovets to contact the FBI at [email protected]. Because contact instructions can change, check current FBI guidance before sending personal or financial information.

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