Russian bitcoin exchange co-founder to be freed in deal for American's release

The Russian co-founder of a popular bitcoin exchange will be released from U.S. custody Wednesday, a day after a deal between Washington and Moscow freed American Marc Fogel, a U.S. official said.

- Louise Radnofsky, Alex Leary & Georgi Kantchev

Alexander Vinnik, the co-founder of BTC-e, is in U.S. custody in California and being prepared for transport to Russia, the official said. A lawyer for Vinnik confirmed that his family had been informed he was getting ready to be sent to Russia.

U.S. authorities have said BTC-e was a key platform used by cybercriminals to facilitate ransomware extortions, identity-theft schemes and narcotics distribution. Vinnik had been awaiting sentencing in the U.S. in late June, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering. He had been detained since 2017, first in Greece and then in France, before his extradition to the U.S. in 2022 at the age of 42.

Preparations for Vinnik's departure from the U.S. followed a hastily convened hearing Tuesday at a U.S. federal court in San Francisco about his case, which took place behind closed doors. A few hours later, Fogel arrived in the U.S. and was greeted at the White House by President Trump, his special envoy Steve Witkoff and other politicians.

Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday and in a social-media post afterward thanked him for Fogel's release. Broadly, Trump and Putin spoke about finding a resolution to the war in Ukraine. "I believe this effort will lead to a successful conclusion, hopefully soon!" Trump wrote.

Witkoff met with Putin when he was in Moscow to pick up Fogel, according to a U.S. official.

The White House hadn't initially indicated what, if anything, the U.S. had given Russia to secure Fogel's release. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had suggested in an interview Tuesday with News Nation: "I think it's also important to note it was not in return for anything."

He added: "There wasn't some deal here where we had to release, like, 10 spies."