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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsThe U.S. and Russia both sought Alexander Vinnik’s extradition from Greece in 2017, but the custody fight did not remain unresolved: Greece transferred him to France, France later transferred him to the United States, and he pleaded guilty in the U.S. in 2024. In February 2025, he returned to Russia as part of a prisoner exchange involving American Marc Fogel.
Why the United States and Russia wanted Vinnik
Greek authorities arrested Russian national Alexander Vinnik in July 2017 at the request of the United States. U.S. prosecutors accused him of operating BTC-e, a cryptocurrency exchange they alleged was used to launder criminal proceeds. In a 2017 announcement of a 21-count indictment against Vinnik and BTC-e, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said the exchange allegedly received deposits valued at more than $4 billion. That was an allegation at the time, not a finding that Vinnik personally laundered that amount. DOJ’s 2017 indictment announcement.
Russia also sought Vinnik’s extradition, based on a separate case. In September 2017, a Greek court was considering the competing requests, and contemporary reporting said a decision on the U.S. request was expected by October 4. Vinnik’s lawyer said he would not contest Russia’s request. That preference did not determine the eventual outcome. CyberScoop’s 2017 report.
How the custody dispute ended
The 2017 contest was only the beginning of the legal path. France made its own extradition request, and Vinnik was transferred from Greece to France before being sent to the United States. The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) recounts the intervening French proceedings in its case retrospective. In August 2022, DOJ announced that Vinnik had been extradited from Greece to the United States. DOJ’s 2022 announcement.
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In May 2024, DOJ reported that Vinnik pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering related to BTC-e. The case should therefore be described as ending in a guilty plea, not a U.S. trial conviction. DOJ’s 2024 plea announcement.
What the BTC-e figures mean
The figures in DOJ’s announcements measure different things and should not be added together or treated as interchangeable estimates of criminal proceeds.
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| Figure | What it describes | Source and qualification |
|---|---|---|
| More than $4 billion | Deposits BTC-e allegedly received | DOJ’s 2017 indictment announcement; an allegation, not a final finding of Vinnik’s personal proceeds. Source. |
| More than $9 billion | Transactions BTC-e processed during its operating period, roughly 2011 through July 2017 | DOJ’s 2024 plea announcement; an exchange-scale transaction figure, not the same measure as the 2017 alleged deposits. DOJ also said BTC-e had more than one million users. Source. |
| $110 million and $12 million | Civil penalties assessed against BTC-e and Vinnik, respectively | FinCEN’s 2017 announcement; penalties, not transaction-volume figures. Source. |
The distinctions matter: an exchange’s transaction volume, deposits cited in an indictment, and civil penalties are different categories. None should be presented as a single amount that Vinnik was found to have personally laundered.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What happened after the guilty plea
In February 2025, the Associated Press reported that Vinnik returned to Russia in a prisoner exchange that also secured the release of American Marc Fogel. That later development closed the custody story begun by the competing U.S. and Russian requests in Greece. AP’s report on the exchange.
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The historical label “dark web bitcoin exchange” captures the allegations around BTC-e, but it should not imply the service is available to consumers today. The case’s documented endpoint is a U.S. guilty plea followed by Vinnik’s reported return to Russia; the cited updates do not establish any current BTC-e service.
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