Quick reads
- Authorities say 27 Indian crypto exchanges were used to launder about Rs 623–624 crore from roughly 2,872 victims.
- The cases span about 21 months (reported timeframe: Jan 2024–Sept 2025) and include 144 linked FIRs/cases.
- Investigations are part of a wider global probe called “The Coin Laundry” that highlights how crypto rails and cash-out storefronts move illicit funds.
- Agencies have raided locations, traced mule accounts and pooling mechanisms, and say these figures are likely the tip of the iceberg.
How the “Coin Laundry” scheme worked and what investigators found
Indian law enforcement and international journalists investigating what they call The Coin Laundry found that fraudsters used a mix of fake/compromised accounts, payment “pools” and certain crypto-exchange on-ramps to convert victims’ money into crypto and then cash it out through networks of mule accounts and storefronts. The flow allowed criminals to hide their origins and move funds across borders quickly.
Investigators in India say their probe identified 27 exchanges implicated in moving roughly Rs 623.6 crore belonging to nearly 2,872 victims over a 21-month window (January 2024 to September 2025). Those transactions feature in about 144 FIRs/cases being examined by agencies. Officials caution that the recorded totals almost certainly understate the true scale because of wallet obfuscation and cross-border layers.
Law enforcement action has included searches and raids at multiple locations, forensic tracing of wallets and bank rails, and efforts to map the “cash-out” points, physical shops and intermediaries that turn crypto back into bank deposits or cash. Agencies say the mix of pseudonymous crypto addresses and informal cash-out networks is what turned small, individual scams into large, laundered sums.
Exchange operators featured in reports have responded variably: some insist they follow KYC/AML norms and cooperate with agencies; others say gaps come from misuse by third parties or from weaknesses in global correspondent systems. Analysts say the episode highlights regulatory and enforcement gaps as well as the need for stronger cross-border cooperation.
What this means for users and regulators
For victims: careful record keeping, quick reporting to cybercrime cells and avoiding re-transferring funds when told to do so can reduce losses. For regulators and exchanges: the findings reinforce calls for tighter on-boarding checks, better transaction monitoring, mandatory suspicious-activity reporting and faster international information sharing. The investigators’ message is clear — crypto can be a powerful tool for crime when cash-out networks remain porous.
