The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has confirmed a record-breaking seizure of cryptocurrency linked to the centralized alternate TradeOgre, taking management of belongings value greater than 56 million Canadian {dollars}—about 40 million US {dollars}—following a federal policing investigation in Quebec. The company described the operation as “the most important cryptocurrency seizure in Canadian historical past,” and mentioned it dismantled the platform’s Canadian infrastructure. The information was introduced on September 18 from Montréal.
Canadian Police Confirms $40 Million Crypto Seizure
In accordance with particulars launched by Canadian media quoting the RCMP, investigators seized servers in Beauharnois within the Montérégie area, which supported TradeOgre’s operations. RCMP Sgt. Mathieu Lagarde mentioned: “The servers that allowed this platform to conduct these transactions have been situated in Canada. So we seized these servers after which seized the crypto belongings managed by the alternate.” Authorities added that this marks the primary time a cryptocurrency alternate has been dismantled by police in Canada.
The yearlong probe was run by the RCMP Federal Policing – Jap Area’s Cash Laundering Investigative Workforce and commenced in June 2024 after a tip from Europol, in keeping with the accounts of the investigation offered by authorities and reported by nationwide retailers. The RCMP alleges TradeOgre didn’t register with the Monetary Transactions and Reviews Evaluation Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) as a cash providers enterprise and didn’t determine its prospects, situations that investigators say allowed felony organizations to hide the origins of funds.
Open-source blockchain intelligence platform Arkham mentioned its tooling was used within the case. In a public publish, Arkham wrote that “as per the RCMP’s web site, Arkham was used as a part of the investigation,” and in a analysis word the agency documented earlier on-chain indicators—particularly messages embedded in Bitcoin transactions—signaling that Canadian police had claimed possession of funds. Arkham’s report additionally famous TradeOgre’s social and website exercise had gone darkish earlier this summer season (X account inactive since Could; web site offline since July 30).
The RCMP mentioned it’s now analyzing transaction information from the platform and that enforcement actions might observe: “The transaction information obtained from the platform will probably be analyzed and fees might observe. The investigation is ongoing.” Authorities emphasised that no arrests had been introduced as of the discharge and inspired anybody with related info to contact investigators.
Whereas the RCMP’s assertion framed TradeOgre as an unregistered venue used to launder proceeds of crime, the seizure has already prompted a broader debate amongst some customers who declare authentic balances have been swept up with illicit funds. What is evident, nevertheless, is that Canadian legislation enforcement has established a brand new high-water mark for home crypto enforcement and, for the primary time, has taken down the Canadian infrastructure of a cryptocurrency alternate as a part of a money-laundering investigation.
At press time, the full crypto market cap stood at $4 trillion.
Featured picture created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
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