crypto Platform Founder extradited to U.S. for Market Manipulation
Aleksei Andriunin, the founder of Gotbit, a crypto platform, has been extradited to the United States. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts made the declaration on February 26.Andriunin was arrested in Portugal in October 2024.
He faces charges of market manipulation and wire fraud. The Department of Justice claims Andriunin was involved in wash trading, which artificially boosts trading volumes. This activity was allegedly done for several firms, including ZM Quant, CLS Global, and MyTrade.
Andriunin, 26, was indicted by a federal jury on October 31, 2024. He arrived in the U.S. on February 25, 2025, and will stay in custody until his hearing.
prosecutors say Gotbit offered market manipulation services to crypto firms from 2018 to 2024. This helped tokens appear more popular on platforms like CoinMarketCap. Andriunin reportedly discussed a code he created for this purpose in a 2019 interview.
Gotbit allegedly earned millions from these fraudulent activities. Andriunin is said to have moved some of the money to a personal Binance account.
If found guilty, Andriunin could face up to 20 years in prison for wire fraud and up to five years for conspiracy. He may also have to pay a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gains from the fraud.
