Gotbit Consulting LLC
Summary
Gotbit Consulting LLC was a Belize-registered cryptocurrency market-making firm that operated a multi-year wash trading enterprise from 2018 to 2024. Founder and CEO Aleksei Andriunin pleaded guilty in March 2025 and was sentenced to eight months in prison in June 2025, with Gotbit ordered to forfeit approximately $23 million in seized cryptocurrency and to cease operations permanently. The firm was part of a broader DOJ enforcement sweep — Operation Token Mirrors — charging ten foreign nationals from four firms in the Northern District of California.
Connected Entities
1 entities · 10 linked investigations- + 5 more
Timeline(15 events)
2018-01-01
Gotbit Consulting LLC begins providing wash trading services to cryptocurrency token issuers, artificially inflating trading volumes on behalf of clients.
DOJ USAO-MA Sentencing Press Release2019-01-01
Aleksei Andriunin and Gotbit directors give an interview describing wash trading software and strategies for concealing artificial trades on public blockchains, later cited in federal proceedings.
Decrypt: DOJ Alleges Gotbit Founder Made Tens of Millions2022-01-01
Robo Inu token issuer allegedly engages Gotbit to artificially inflate its trading volume on BitMart and other exchanges.
DOJ USAO-MA Eighteen Individuals Charged Press Release2024-10-09
Federal grand jury indictment unsealed in the District of Massachusetts, charging Gotbit Consulting LLC, Aleksei Andriunin, Fedor Kedrov, and Qawi Jalili with wire fraud, conspiracy to commit market manipulation and wire fraud, and related charges. Part of a broader Massachusetts action charging 18 individuals and entities and seizing over $25 million in cryptocurrency.
DOJ USAO-MA Press Release2025-02-25
Aleksei Andriunin extradited from Portugal to the United States.
CoinTelegraph: Gotbit Founder Extradited to US2025-03-20
Aleksei Andriunin and Gotbit Consulting LLC plead guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy to commit market manipulation and wire fraud in the District of Massachusetts. Forfeiture of approximately $23 million in cryptocurrency agreed.
CoinDesk: Gotbit Founder Aleksei Andriunin Pleads Guilty2025-03-25
Federal grand jury in San Francisco (N.D. Cal.) indicts Gotbit employees Antoine Tsao, Ian Sofronov, and Nemanja Popov on wire fraud conspiracy and wire fraud charges as part of Operation Token Mirrors.
IRS-CI: Ten Foreign Nationals Charged2025-03-30
Antoine Tsao arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
TRM Labs: Ten Fraudsters from Four Financial Services Firms Charged2025-06-02
Antoine Tsao pleads guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud before U.S. District Court Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin in Oakland, California.
TRM Labs: Ten Fraudsters from Four Financial Services Firms Charged2025-06-03
Court enters Preliminary Order of Forfeiture against Antoine Tsao covering 1.2 million USDT.
TRM Labs: Ten Fraudsters from Four Financial Services Firms Charged2025-06-01
Aleksei Andriunin sentenced to eight months in prison (credited as time served) and one year supervised release by U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley in Boston. Gotbit sentenced to five years probation and ordered to permanently cease operations.
Decrypt: Gotbit Founder Sentenced to Prison for Crypto Wash Trading2025-10-02
Three defendants from other firms (Vortex and Contrarian) arrested in Singapore and subsequently extradited to the United States as part of Operation Token Mirrors.
The Defiant: Crypto Market Maker CEOs Extradited From Singapore2026-02-10
Nemanja Popov pleads guilty and is sentenced in the Northern District of California.
IRS-CI: Ten Foreign Nationals Charged2026-03-30
Operation Token Mirrors publicly announced; three indictments unsealed in the Northern District of California charging ten foreign nationals from Gotbit, Vortex, Antier, and Contrarian.
DOJ USAO-NDCA: Ten Foreign Nationals ChargedDecision Log
- hash: Q5dEGrKscyxPE5WKKeVSXMWJiXPDZ43URgR94RJ2zRm
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain and source URLs are archived via the Internet Archive.
model: claude-code-investigator
generated: 5/27/2026, 6:18:03 PM
last updated: 5/27/2026, 6:34:07 PM
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