TechFlow reported, according to Decrypt, that the U.S. Department of Justice announced on November 1 its lawsuit against Aleksei Andriunin, founder and CEO of cryptocurrency market maker Gotbit, charging him with wire fraud and conspiracy to manipulate markets. It is alleged that between 2018 and 2024, Andriunin artificially inflated cryptocurrency trading volumes through "fictitious transactions" to help projects get listed on CoinMarketCap and cryptocurrency exchanges.
Prosecutors stated that Andriunin provided fictitious trading services for meme coins including Robo Inu and Saitama, with illicit proceeds transferred into his personal Binance account. Earlier, on October 9, the Department of Justice filed lawsuits against Gotbit and three other crypto firms, seizing over $25 million in cryptocurrency. If convicted on wire fraud charges, Andriunin faces up to 20 years in prison. Other conspiracy charges carry maximum sentences of five years.
Previous report, cryptocurrency market maker Gotbit confirmed on social platform X that its CEO, Alex Andryunin, has been arrested in Portugal.
