Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
In criminal proceeding No.12025000000002800, opened on 22 October 2025, the investigation is examining the circumstances of illegal drug circulation and money legalization, in which KIT Group LLC, the financial company Liberty Finance LLC, and the cryptocurrency platform WhiteBIT are involved. The case materials also mention Kharkiv resident Anton Shentsev, and the investigation is checking possible links between the activity of exchange services, cryptocurrency transactions, and funds that may have come from online drug shops.
As the media report, according to the investigation materials, law enforcement discovered a number of “cold” crypto wallets that are alleged to have been used by shadow exchange services of the KIT Group network. The case documents state that transactions with these wallets were carried out via virtual bots and the trading terminals of the WhiteBIT platform. The investigation found regular inflows of cryptocurrency to the specified addresses from a large number of sources. Among them, according to the case materials, were addresses linked to the online drug stores Underground, Total Black, and Punisher. The proceeding states that some of the funds, after conversion, could have returned to illegal circulation. The investigation connects such operations with possible financing of purchases of new batches of narcotics, expansion of the distribution network, payment for technical specialists’ work, and support for the operation of online platforms. Separately, law enforcement is checking the operation of KIT Group’s electronic exchange services. According to the investigation’s version, persons associated with them may have used web resources without the appropriate license from the National Bank of Ukraine and conducted electronic money operations in violation of legal requirements. According to the case materials, users were given the ability to exchange electronic money with subsequent cash pickup at exchange points. The investigation claims such operations may have been conducted without client identification and without providing documents confirming the transactions. During the questioning of one witness, the mechanism for exchanging USDT through KIT Group services was described. According to his testimony, a client contacted the crypto exchange operator via Telegram, after which he received the details to carry out the operation, the crypto wallet address, and information about the cash pickup point. After transferring USDT, the operator provided a code to receive the funds. The witness also reported that after receiving the cash, the client was not given a receipt or other document confirming the transaction, and identity documents were not required. The investigation is checking whether such mechanisms could have been used to convert funds obtained from illegal drug circulation. The case materials note that the National Bank of Ukraine’s Payment Infrastructure Registry does not contain information about payment systems or legal entities that use the specified web resources to exchange electronic money. Law enforcement is identifying the individuals who administered the online exchangers and who may have conducted such activities without the necessary permits. Separately, the case materials include information about the NBU’s decision regarding Liberty Finance LLC. On 23 May 2026 the regulator applied a measure to the company in the form of revocation of the license to provide lending financial services and the license to conduct foreign exchange operations in respect of trading currency valuables in cash. In addition, on 9 October 2025 the NBU adopted decision No.370-rsh banning the provision of financial payment services through KIT Group’s internet services. That regulator decision preceded the opening of the criminal proceeding and concerns compliance with financial legislation requirements. The criminal proceeding is being investigated under part 2 of Article 307 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which provides liability for illegal production, manufacture, acquisition, storage, transport, shipment, or sale of narcotic substances by prior conspiracy of a group of persons, and under part 2 of Article 209 — legalization of property obtained by criminal means, in large amounts.
The mention of Anton Shentsev, KIT Group, and WhiteBIT in the criminal case materials does not by itself mean their guilt has been established. Final legal assessment of the actions of specific persons can be given only after the investigation and the court proceedings in the case. Read also: WhiteBIT exchange linked to Russian crypto money Dmytro Shentsev: what connects the ex-regional with the “Carthage” case? WhiteBIT exchange: Shentsev and Nosov launder cryptocurrency from the Russian Federation at the expense of losses to Ukrainians. WhiteBIT: Shentsev and Nosov launder bloody Russian money
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