Connect with us
DAPA Banner

Crypto World

Russia’s Largest Bitcoin Miner BitRiver Enters Bankruptcy Proceedings: Report

Published

on

Russia’s Largest Bitcoin Miner BitRiver Enters Bankruptcy Proceedings: Report


The company’s founder and CEO, Igor Runets, was placed under house arrest in connection with multiple tax evasion charges.

BitRiver, Russia’s largest Bitcoin miner, is on the verge of collapse amid mounting financial and legal problems. Courts have placed its parent company, Fox Group of Companies, under observation as debts and unpaid obligations pile up.

One of the disputes driving the court action involves Infrastructure of Siberia. The company is seeking more than $9 million after BitRiver failed to deliver mining equipment. The case stems from a large advance payment for hardware that was never supplied. This led to a lawsuit and a ruling in favor of the energy firm.

Advertisement

Operational Bans and Energy Disputes

Operational bans have hit BitRiver’s regional sites hard. Mining centers in Irkutsk and Buryatia remain offline due to government restrictions. In addition, a 40 MW facility in Ingushetia was shut down by authorities for violating local rules.

These shutdowns have worsened the company’s financial strain, coming alongside rising disputes over unpaid electricity bills. Energy suppliers have filed claims totaling hundreds of millions of rubles. Some also lost trading rights after nonpayment, further restricting BitRiver’s ability to operate.

Leadership issues have added to the pressure. The company’s founder and CEO, Igor Runets, was placed under house arrest in connection with multiple tax evasion charges. Authorities allege that he attempted to conceal company assets to avoid paying taxes, a claim that Runets and his legal team have denied.

BitRiver’s Struggles Amid Sector Growth

BitRiver has also struggled under international pressure. US sanctions and partner exits have cut access to foreign markets. Japanese firms, including SBI, also withdrew from Russia, limiting financial support and supply channels.

Advertisement

The company once managed over 175,000 rigs across 15 centers, generating $129 million in revenue last year. Its rapid decline highlights the fragile balance between regulatory, financial, and operational pressures in Russia’s mining industry.

You may also like:

Despite BitRiver’s setbacks, Russia’s crypto mining sector continues to expand. Grid-connected mining capacity rose 33% in 2025 to 4 GW, reflecting strong domestic demand for industrial mining infrastructure.

Analysts say BitRiver’s bankruptcy could signal broader challenges for large-scale miners operating in restrictive regions. Yet the sector’s continued growth shows that Russia remains a major player in global Bitcoin mining, even as individual companies falter.

SPECIAL OFFER (Exclusive)

SECRET PARTNERSHIP BONUS for CryptoPotato readers: Use this link to register and unlock $1,500 in exclusive BingX Exchange rewards (limited time offer).

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Crypto World

Ketman Project Identifies 100 North Korean IT Workers Working in Web3

Published

on

Ketman Project Identifies 100 North Korean IT Workers Working in Web3

The Ketman Project, funded by an Ethereum Foundation stipend, identified 100 North Korean IT workers and alerted about 53 projects employing DPRK operatives.

The Ethereum Foundation said it funded a six-month project that exposed 100 North Korean operatives who had infiltrated Web3 companies under fake identities.

The foundation on Thursday shared a recap of its ETH Rangers program, which was launched in late 2024 to provide “stipends for individuals doing public goods security work” within the ecosystem.

Advertisement

One of the recipients used the capital to build the Ketman Project to focus on investigating “fake developers” embedded within crypto, particularly operatives from the People’s Republic of Korea.

During the six-month stipend period, the Ketman Project identified “100 different DPRK IT workers operating within Web3 organizations” and reached out to about 53 projects to alert them about having potentially employed active DPRK operatives.

“This work directly addresses one of the most pressing operational security threats facing the Ethereum ecosystem today,” the Ethereum Foundation said.

North Korean operatives have been plaguing the crypto sector, leading to billions worth of crypto stolen over the years. One of the highest-profile hacking groups from North Korea is known as the Lazarus Group.

Advertisement
Ketman Project website articles on DPRK operatives. Source: Ketman Project

The Ethereum Foundation did not go into detail about how the Ketman Project was able to identify the DPRK operatives. However, the project’s website has an extensive range of articles explaining the types of “tactics, behaviors and operational patterns” the operatives deploy.

Related: CIA to integrate AI ‘co-workers’ to process intelligence, catch spies

They include technical red flags such as reusing avatars and profile metadata across multiple GitHub accounts, exposing unlinked email addresses during accidental screen sharing, and displaying default language settings, such as Russian, that contradict their claimed nationality.

Alongside identifying North Korean operatives, the Ketman Project also developed an open-source detection tool to identify suspicious GitHub activity and co-authored an industry-standard framework for identifying DPRK IT workers in partnership with blockchain-focused nonprofit organization the Security Alliance.

Magazine: Nobody knows if quantum secure cryptography will even work

Advertisement