Aleksej Besciokov, a Lithuanian citizen and Russian resident, was arrested in the southern state of Kerala on Tuesday, India’s top investigative agency said.

According to the US Justice Department (DOJ), he was one of the administrators of Garantex, a Russian cryptocurrency exchange, and was responsible for reviewing and approving its transactions.

Besciokov is in custody and has not yet made a statement. Garantex could not immediately be reached for comment.

Besciokov was “residing in Russia”, according to DOJ’s recently-released indictment, and it is unclear when and why he came to India.

India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said in a statement that it issued a provisional arrest warrant against himat Washington’s request.

Besciokov will now be produced in a court in Delhi, it said. It is not clear when he will be extradited to the US.

The United States, in coordination with Germany and Finland, had taken down the online infrastructure used by Garantex, the DOJ said last week.

It added that Garantex processed at least $96bn (£74.10bn) in cryptocurrency transactions since 2019 and that it allegedly received hundreds of millions in criminal proceeds, which were then used to “facilitate several crimes”, including hacking, ransomware, terrorism and drug trafficking.

The DOJ also accused the Lithuanian national of violating sanctions and operating an “unlicensed money transmitting business”.

Last week, US officials charged Besciokov along with the exchange’s Russian co-founder Aleksandr Mira Serda with money laundering.

Garantex was sanctioned by the US Treasury Department in 2022.

But soon after, Besciokov and other administrators “redesigned” its operations to “evade sanctions” and induce American businesses into working with them, DOJ said.

He has signed an executive order creating what he calls a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve as well as a Digital Asset Stockpile, which will consist of other forms of digital currency.

The funds will be stocked with coins forfeited to the federal government as part of criminal or civil proceedings.

White House AI and crypto tsar David Sacks likened them to a “a digital Fort Knox for the cryptocurrency”, drawing comparison to the Kentucky military base that stores a significant portion of US gold assets.

However, some crypto enthusiasts have criticised the government for not being bolder, while others have raised question marks about the lack of transparency over the process.

Sacks has ordered a full accounting of the federal government’s existing crypto reserves, which he estimated at 200,000 Bitcoin alone. That’s worth $17.5bn (£13.6bn) at today’s prices.

Nonetheless, Charles Edwards of the Capriole Fund, a Bitcoin and digital assets hedge fund, called Thursday’s announcement “a pig in lipstick” in response to Sacks’ post on X.

“No active buying means this is just a fancy title for Bitcoin holdings that already existed with the government,” he said.

Trump’s executive order says that the Treasury and Commerce secretary will come up with strategies for acquiring more government Bitcoin, provided these are “budget neutral and do not impose incremental costs on United States taxpayers”.

Jason Yanowitz, Co-Founder of crypto firm Blockworks, said the decision set a “horrible precedent” and “made no sense.”

“Without a clear framework, we risk arbitrary asset selections, which would distort the markets and drive a loss of public trust,” he suggested.

Other analysts though have been more positive.

“This approach makes much more sense than buying the assets,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

“It would surely be bizarre for the US to sell dollars to buy crypto, when the dollar is the globe’s reserve currency and therefore a source of enormous influence.”

Further details are expected when the president is due to host the first crypto summit at the White House on Friday.

It is unclear whether the planned reserve could face legal hurdles, or if it might require an act of Congress.

The US will not sell any Bitcoin deposited in the reserve, said Sacks, and will instead keep it as an asset.

It was unclear how the new stockpile would benefit Americans, but Sacks said it “will not cost taxpayers a dime”.

His implication that the US government would not buy Bitcoin led prices of the world’s largest cryptocurrency to fall by more than 5%.

Some countries maintain strategic reserves of national assets to diversify government holdings and hedge against financial risk.

The US also keeps a petroleum reserve. Canada has a maple syrup reserve.

Earlier this week, Trump revealed the names of five cryptocurrencies that he said he would like included in the strategic reserve.

The market prices of the five coins he named – Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana and Cardano – swiftly jumped after that announcement.

Mr Yanowitz said the US government needed to be wary of being seen to pick winners.

“Ensuring transparency through independent audits and public reporting is crucial for fostering innovation instead of favouritism,” he said.

The order Trump signed states that the Treasury and Commerce secretary will come up with strategies for acquiring more government Bitcoin, provided these are “budget neutral and do not impose incremental costs on United States taxpayers.”

Trump aggressively courted the crypto community during his presidential campaign. Former US President Joe Biden led a crackdown on crypto, citing concerns about fraud.

The market prices of the five coins he named – Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana and Cardano – all swiftly jumped after the announcement.

During Trump’s presidential campaign, he aggressively courted the crypto community. The previous US president, Joe Biden, had overseen a crackdown on crypto due to concerns about fraud and money laundering.

It is unclear how the new stockpile will work. More information is expected on Friday, when Trump plans to host the first Crypto Summit at the White House.

In a social media post on Sunday, Trump said he had signed an order which “directed the Presidential Working Group to move forward on a Crypto Strategic Reserve that includes XRP, SOL, and ADA”.

About an hour later he added in another post: “And, obviously, BTC and ETH, as other valuable Cryptocurrencies, will be at the heart of the Reserve.”

The first three coins he named jumped by up to 62% on Sunday.

Bitcoin and Ethereum also jumped by more than 10% each.

The posts marked a new upward turn for crypto prices, which had dropped sharply since spiking after his election.

Shortly after taking office in January, Trump signed an executive to create a presidential working group tasked with proposing new crypto laws and regulations.

The order called on the group to “evaluate the potential creation and maintenance of a national digital asset stockpile” that could use “cryptocurrencies lawfully seized by the Federal Government through its law enforcement efforts”.

It is unclear whether creating a new national strategic stockpile would require an act of Congress.

Trump had previously been a crypto critic, telling Fox News in 2021 that Bitcoin is a “scam”.

But in recent weeks, both he and his wife Melania Trump have launched their own cryptocurrencies, leading to accusations that they are trying to profit from his White House policies.

The Dubai-based company’s founder told users that their funds were “safe” and that it would refund any of those affected.

It said hackers stole from its Ethereum coin digital wallet. Ethereum is the second largest cryptocurrency by value after Bitcoin.

Bybit’s founder Ben Zhou said the money could be covered by the firm or by a loan from partners. Bybit holds $20bn (£15bn) in assets.

Bybit said the hackers exploited security features, then transferred the money to an unidentified address.

After the theft, the value of Ethereum fell by around 4% on Friday, leaving it worth $2,641.41 (£2,090) per coin.

The scale of the theft would exceed a previous record, which was a $620m (£490m) heist of Ethereum and USD Coin from the Ronin Network in 2022.

Bybit was founded in 2018. US President Donald Trump and former Paypal chief Peter Thiel were reportedly among its early investors.

Bybit says it has more than 60 million users worldwide and offers access to various cryptocurrencies.

“Bybit is solvent even if this hack loss is not recovered, all of clients assets are 1 to 1 backed, we can cover the loss,” Mr Zhou added.

The company said in a post on X that it had reported the case to authorities and that it was working “quickly and extensively” to identify the hackers.

Cryptocurrencies, which have become popular with investors, have sparked division as many criticise their value for being based purely on speculation, allowing their value to be easily manipulated.

Most recently, Donald Trump has been criticised for launching his own digital coin while saying he “doesn’t know much” about the cryptocurrency.

The digital coin called TRUMP appeared on his social media accounts ahead of his inauguration and quickly became one of the most valuable crypto coins, but has since fallen significantly in value.

It highlights security concerns within the digital currency market, which was hoping for renewed trust after Mr Trump launched his coin. His adviser and and multi-billionaire owner of Tesla, Elon Musk, has also in the past talked up Bitcoin.

In 2014, crypto exchange Mt Gox filed for bankruptcy after $350m (£210m) worth of digital currency had been stolen due to a loophole in its security.

In 2019, hackers stole stolen $41m worth of Bitcoin from the Binance exchange in another major crypto-currency heist.

Real Bedford FC, currently in the eighth tier of English football, has received £3.5m from Gemini founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.

The team is in discussions to merge with Bedford Town, which is in the seventh tier.

Bitcoin podcaster Peter McCormack bought Real Bedford – then in the 10th tier and called Bedford FC – in January 2022 as part of his plan to grow the town’s football ambitions.

The tech twins announced their intention to make the investment in April 2024 after currency exchange Gemini started its sponsorship in January 2022.

It was said the investment would be used for the development of a training centre, the launch of a football academy for new talent and to continue supporting youth football.

The move means the twins will assume the role of co-owners of the club alongside the cryptocurrency podcaster.

“The fact the Winklevoss twins are now co-owners is massive,” Mr McCormack told the BBC.

“They want to be involved in the running of the club and I will do the day-to-day business but we will be speaking regularly.

“This investment is huge for the town of Bedford. The money will be used to help the club pursue its league ambitions.”

He added the merger contract was “an ongoing process” and he was speaking with both sets of fans.

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss accused Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg of stealing the idea for his site from them when they were all at Harvard together.

Following a lengthy lawsuit, they eventually received a settlement that included $20m (£16m) in cash and shares in the company.

The story was told in the 2010 Oscar-winning film The Social Network. Since then the pair have become two of the world’s first well-known Bitcoin billionaires.

As well as owning a large number of Bitcoin, they also built a crypto exchange called Gemini, a stock exchange for crypto coins.

Last year they were ordered to return more than $1bn (£800m) to customers due to a defunct lending programme and pay a large fine for unsafe and unsound practices.

The cryptocoin $Libra quickly rose in value before nosediving, causing severe losses for the majority of people who had invested in it.

A judge will now determine if the president should face fraud charges over the incident.

On Monday, Milei said he had acted “in good faith” and dismissed investors’ complaints, comparing their actions to people who gamble: “If you go to a casino and lose money, what’s there to complain about when you knew the risks?”

President Milei spoke about the $Libra incident in an interview with Argentine TV channel Todo Noticias on Monday, after a weekend during which he had stayed unusually quiet on social media.

He insisted that his post on X, which contained a link to a site selling $Libra, did not constitute an endorsement.

“I didn’t promote it, I merely shared it,” he told Todo Noticias’ Jonny Viale.

Milei’s post, which he deleted after just a few hours, drew heavy criticism not just from his political rivals in Argentina but also from those who had invested in the cryptocurrency.

Some have argued the $Libra launch resembled a “rug pull” – where promoters draw in buyers, only to stop trading activity and make off with the money raised from sales.

The presidential office insisted that Milei was in no way involved in the development of $Libra and announced that the Anti-Corruption Office would determine if the president had acted improperly.

Milei himself defended deleting his post, saying that at the time he did not know “the details of the project and after learning about it, I decided not to continue promoting it”.

Opposition politicians, however, have not been placated by the statements, threatening to start impeachment proceedings against Milei.

While political analysts point out that the opposition is unlikely to get the votes needed for an impeachment trial to go ahead, the scandal threatens to divert Milei’s attention away from his radical reform agenda.

A federal judge has been tasked with deciding whether fraud allegations brought against the president by a number of plaintiffs should go ahead.

In his TV interview, Milei appeared combative, stressing that he had “nothing to hide”.

He also said that those who had invested in $Libra had done so “voluntarily” and knew of the risks.

“It’s like playing Russian roulette and getting the bullet.”

Milei posted on X, formerly Twitter, about the $LIBRA coin on Friday, which he said would help fund small businesses and start-ups.

He shared a link to buy it, causing its price to shoot up. But within a few hours, he deleted his post and the cryptocurrency nosedived in value, losing investors most of their money.

Some opposition members of Congress say they plan to start proceedings to impeach Milei. Meanwhile, lawyers filed complaints of fraud in Argentina’s criminal court on Sunday.

Some people online have accused Milei of what is known as a “rug pull” – where promoters of a cryptocurrency draw in buyers, only to stop trading activity and make off with the money raised from sales. They pointed out that the link used to buy the coins referenced a phrase the president uses in his speeches.

But Argentina’s presidential office said on Saturday that the decision to remove the post was to avoid “speculation” following public reaction to the launch of the cryptocurrency.

It said Milei was not involved in the cryptocurrency’s development, and that the government’s Anti-Corruption Office would investigate and determine whether anyone had acted improperly, including the president himself.

Jonatan Baldiviezo, one of the plaintiffs who filed the legal action, told Associated Press “the crime of fraud was committed, in which the president’s actions were essential”.

Milei’s political opponents have jumped on the opportunity.

Former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who is now in opposition, was heavily critical, calling him a “crypto scammer” in a post seen 6.4 million times.

For its part, the country’s main opposition coalition said it would file a request to impeach the president, calling it an “unprecedented scandal“.

Esteban Paulón, a member of the opposition Socialist Party, said in a post on X that he would also request the start of impeachment proceedings.

The announcement comes a day after President-elect Donald Trump launched the $Trump cryptocurrency. Both coins have risen but have seen volatile trade.

“The Official Melania Meme is live! You can buy $MELANIA now,” she posted on the social platform X on Sunday.

The website for the “Official Melania Meme” says it is a crypto asset created and tracked on the Solana blockchain.

Disclaimers on the websites of both the $Trump and $Melania coins said they were “not intended to be, or the subject of” an investment opportunity or a security.

According to the CoinMarketCap website, $Trump currently has a total market valuation of about $8.7bn (£7.1bn), while $Melania’s stands at around $1.3bn.

Trump had previously called crypto a “scam” but during the 2024 election campaign became the first presidential candidate to accept digital assets as donations.

On the campaign trail, Trump also said he would create a strategic bitcoin stockpile and appoint financial regulators that take a more positive stance towards digital assets.

That spurred expectations that he would strip back regulations on the crypto industry.

In the wake of Trump’s victory, bitcoin jumped to a record high is currently trading at $140,000, according to crypto trading platform Coinbase.

On Friday, the incoming artificial intelligence (AI) and crypto tsar David Sacks held a “Crypto Ball” in Washington, DC.

Other cryptocurrencies, including dogecoin – which has been promoted by high-profile Trump supporter Elon Musk – have also risen sharply this year.

Under President Joe Biden, regulators cited concerns about fraud and money laundering as they cracked down on crypto companies by suing exchanges.

His release of the meme coin, $Trump, comes as he prepares to take office on Monday as 47th president of the US.

The venture was co-ordinated by CIC Digital LLC – an affiliate of the Trump Organization – which has previously sold Trump-branded shoes and fragrances.

Meme coins are used to build popularity for a viral internet trend or movement, but they lack intrinsic value and are extremely volatile investments.

By Saturday afternoon, hours after its launch, the market capitalisation for $Trump reached nearly $5.5bn (£4.5bn), according to CoinMarketCap.com.

CIC Digital LLC and Fight Fight Fight LLC, a company formed in Delaware earlier this month, own 80% of the tokens. It is unclear how much money Trump might make from the venture.

“My NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It’s time to celebrate everything we stand for: WINNING!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social as he announced the meme coin on Friday night.

Some 200m of the digital tokens have been issued and another 800m will be released in the next three years, the coin’s website said.

“This Trump Meme celebrates a leader who doesn’t back down, no matter the odds,” the website said.

It included a disclaimer noting the coin is “not intended to be, or the subject of” an investment opportunity or a security and was “not political and has nothing to do with” any political campaign, political office or government agency.

Critics accused Trump of cashing in on the presidency.

“Trump owning 80 percent and timing launch hours before inauguration is predatory and many will likely get hurt by it,” Nick Tomaino, a crypto venture capitalist, said in a social media post.

Such digital tokens are notorious for speculators using hype to pump up the value before selling at the top of the market, leaving latecomers to count their losses as the price crashes.

Cryptocurrency investors are hoping the Trump administration will boost the industry.

President Joe Biden’s regulators cited concerns about fraud and money laundering as they cracked down on crypto companies by suing exchanges.

Trump was previously skittish about cryptocurrency, but at a Bitcoin conference in Nashville last year he said America would be “the crypto capital of the planet” once he returned to Washington.

His sons Erik and Donald Jr announced their own crypto venture last year.

Do Kwon was the boss of Terraform, which operated two cryptocurrencies – TerraUSD and Luna – both of which collapsed in 2022, sparking a wider sell-off in the crypto market.

The US says he was responsible for the coins’ failure, accusing him of “orchestrating a multi-billion dollar crypto asset securities fraud”.

Kwon fled South Korea after a warrant for his arrest was issued, eventually ending up in Montenegro where he has now been extradited from, following a lengthy legal battle.

He was previously found guilty of forging documents by a Montenegro court, having been arrested as he was attempting to board a plane to Dubai in March 2023.

It had been unclear whether he would face criminal proceedings in the US, however, as Montenegro does not have extradition treaties with the US or South Korea, which has also been seeking his extradition.

Kwon finally being sent to the US brings to an end legal proceedings that lasted more than 18 months.

The Montenegrin Ministry of Justice approved the extradition earlier in December.It claimed that Do Kwon had also agreed to it.

Kwon’s firm Terraform Labs became widely known in 2021, when its coins Luna and TerraUSD exploded in popularity.Fans of Luna became known as “Lunatics”, with Kwon referred to as their “king”.

But, despite a huge amount of money being poured into the coins, on 9 May 2022 Terraform Labs collapsed catastrophically, losing more than 99% of its value in 48 hours.

Investors scrambled to take their money out of other cryptocurrencies, fearing that a similar thing could happen to them, which resulted in values falling significantly across the whole sector.

It’s estimated the so-called “cryptocrash” resulted in losses of $400bn (£318 bn).

Bitcoin was among the assets affected, however it has significantly grown in value since then and briefly stood at more than $100,000 per coin in December.

Terraform Labs ultimately filed for bankruptcy in the US in January 2024.