- Gotbit founder and CEO Aleksei Andriunin was extradited to the US on Feb. 25, the US Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts said.
- The 26-year old Russian national was arrested in October 2024 over allegations of market manipulation and fraud.
Aleksei Andriunin, the founder and CEO Gotbit, has been extradited to the US where he faces charges of wire fraud and market manipulation.
U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts said in a press release on Feb. 26 that Andriunin, a 26-year old Russian national, manipulated crypto markets “on behalf of client cryptocurrency companies.”
He was arrested in October 2024 in Portugal, with a federal jury indicting him over wire fraud and conspiracy to commit market manipulation and wire fraud.
Gotbit founder touted a “code” for wash trading
Specifically, the US Department of Justice alleges that Andriunin undertook wash trading, with these trades aimed at manipulating volume on behalf of crypto companies. According to prosecutors, Gotbit’s clients included companies in the US.
Allegedly, the crimes happened between 2018 and 2024.
“In a 2019 interview, Andriunin allegedly described how he developed a code to “wash trade” cryptocurrencies to artificially inflate trading volume for the purpose of getting cryptocurrencies listed on CoinMarketCap (a website that published information about “trending” cryptocurrencies) and trading on larger cryptocurrency exchanges,” the DOJ said in the press release on Feb. 26.
Andriunin, who was extradited to the U.S. on February 25, 2025, is in custody where he’ll remain pending the hearing of his case. If found guilty, he faces a jail term of up to 20 years for wire fraud. Conspiracy to commit market manipulation and wire fraud carry a prison sentence of up to five years plus a fine.
“The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, restitution and forfeiture. The charge of conspiracy to commit market manipulation and wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, a fine of up to $250,000 to twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, restitution and forfeiture,” the USAO, District of Massachusetts wrote.
