From BigGo Finance · BigGo Finance · · 1m 30s
Israel Police Arrest Five in $5 Million Crypto Laundering Case
Israeli police arrest five over alleged $5 million crypto laundering via WhatsApp group.
In brief
Israeli police arrest five over alleged $5 million crypto laundering via WhatsApp group. Israeli police arrested five people on Nov. 10 for laundering 16 million shekels ($5 million) through unlicensed crypto trades arranged on a WhatsApp group. Originally reported by BigGo Finance.
Arrests
Israeli police arrested five people on Nov. 10 over an alleged unlicensed crypto exchange run through a WhatsApp group that handled about 16 million shekels ($5 million).
Investigation Details
Investigators from Lahav 433 say trading proceeds were moved into bank accounts disguised as loans backed by purpose-made agreements, and the suspects were questioned on suspicion of money laundering, unlicensed financial services and fraud.
Seized Assets
Police seized wallets, computers and cash during the investigation.
Alleged Activities
The group ran an unlicensed exchange operation and moved trading profits into ordinary bank accounts by dressing the transfers up as loans backed by agreements drawn up for that purpose.
Previous Cases
The case follows two October tax investigations, including one involving about $13 million in unreported trading tied to Binance records.
Tax Reporting Gap
A 2024 state audit found only about 500 people a year reported crypto activity against a potential base of at least 200,000.
Enforcement Push
On Oct. 6 the Israel Tax Authority announced two separate crypto tax cases involving unreported trading and offshore accounts.
Banks and Crypto
Bank Leumi plans to offer Bitcoin, Ether and Solana trading in early 2027, while Bits of Gold probed a customer data security incident in August 2.2026.
The short version
Israeli police arrested five people on Nov. 10 for laundering 16 million shekels ($5 million) through unlicensed crypto trades arranged on a WhatsApp group.
