Kazakhstan’s regulatory body, the Financial Monitoring Agency (FMA), has shut down the RAKS cryptocurrency exchange over its involvement in money laundering. The exchange was said to have made over $224 million a year in turnover.
According to a report by Interfex Kazakhstan, the ban came when the FMA detected that the exchange was being used to launder money made from drug trafficking and internet fraud.
During the investigation, it was found that RAKS ran in secret for about three years without revealing who owned it, what licenses it had, or what audits it had. These factors, a contrast to regulated platforms, made the exchange appealing to criminals.
Before the takedown, people saw warning signs, with the exchange’s social media accounts disappearing, customer support stopped answering questions, and forum posts talking about unpaid bonds and liquidity.
This led to the authorities freezing 67 wallets that held almost 10 million USDT. They also linked the exchange to more than 200 “drug shops” and about 20 darknet marketplaces that used RAKS to move and convert money made from crime. On September 29, 2025, the FMA announced that RAKS would be blocked.
Rise in crypto scams across the world
There has been a substantial increase in the number of crimes related to crypto globally. According to findings by CertiK, the crypto industry experienced a loss of $155.9 million to exploits in the month of September alone.
Kazakhstan has also taken steps to make its regulated crypto sector stronger in response to rising risks and the need for oversight. The government set up a state fund for strategic cryptocurrency holdings on September 29. The goal of the fund is to support regulated crypto projects and make the market more open. The fund is meant to give institutional investors a stable framework and stop illegal activities in the country’s growing digital asset ecosystem.