The Crypto Scheme Funding Putin's War with Alex Browder

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Alex Browder (0:47)

I'm the first high schooler ever sanctioned by Russia. I created the largest open source database of cryptocurrency money laundering, which exposes how state sanctioned actors, criminals, drug dealers and everyone else is using cryptocurrency to launder their funds. In January, 2025, the Russians launched their own stable point and it's become one of their main tools for sanctions evasion.

Most of the drone producers who are trying to trade with China and North Korea and other countries are using it. Drug dealers, oligarchs are using it, and it's become that tool of choice. In 2025 alone, it processed over $100 billion in cumulative volume. Russia responded by sanctioning me, so it's clear the work has touched the nerve.

Konstantin Kisin (1:37)

The British government wants to force YouTube to downrank independent content like this and replace it with approved messaging from the mainstream media. The only way you can fight back and continue to enjoy our content is to make sure you're subscribed. Like this video and comment below to have your say on what the government is doing. Alex Browder, welcome to TRIGGERnometry.

Alex Browder (1:59)

Thanks for having me on.

Konstantin Kisin (2:00)

It's great to have you on. You are the youngest person ever to have been sanctioned by Russia for showing and revealing how they alongside other countries actually use crypto to launder money and avoid western sanctions. Fascinating story, very important story. Before we get into it, just tell us a little bit about the story of how you started to look at this, and how you discovered what you discovered and what you then discovered.

Alex Browder (2:26)

Yeah, so it's an interesting story. On the surface, I'm like a regular, I've had a regular childhood. I'm an avid football player. I go out with my friends every weekend, and I go to school in North London.

But there's always been something hovering over my life, which has made me different from most people my age. So my father was the largest foreign investor in Russia. He spent most of his career exposing corruption within Russia. Obviously, this didn't make him friendly with the Kremlin.

They kicked him out in 2005 and declared him a threat to national security.

And my father's lawyer, a brave man named Sergei Magnitsky, was arrested, who was helping him expose this corruption, was arrested, tortured in prison for 355 days, and killed in November 2009 He left the wife and two kids. And that murder has cast a shadow over my life, and Russia's aggression towards my family, and indeed towards the wider world, has been increasing since then. And so I've always been inspired that I need to do something to help stop this. And so what is a young person good at? I would say technology.

And so the thing which really got me into cryptocurrency was in February 2025, the North Koreans managed to steal $1.5 billion from a cryptocurrency exchange in less than five seconds. And that $1.5 billion was laundered in, fully laundered and cashed out in under 48 hours. And so if North Korea are able to do that and get away with it, what else are they doing? And what else are other countries doing? So I started digging on the Internet. And long story short, I created the largest open source database of cryptocurrency money laundering, which exposes how state-sanctioned actors, criminals, drug dealers, and everyone else is using cryptocurrency to launder their funds. Off of that, I authored a big Henry Jackson report, 100-page report on how the laundering works and how to stop it. It got published by the Henry Jackson Society in March. And since then, I've been on a large scale campaign to try and take down bad actors and protect victims here within the UK and other countries from malicious campaigns. And so, it's really gone lots of traction, and so I'm glad to be sitting down with you guys today.