Alexander Vinnik, a Russian national and operator of the BTC-e cryptocurrency exchange, has admitted guilt to charges of money laundering between 2011 and 2017.

Vinnik's exchange, BTC-e, was involved in over $9 billion in transactions, serving more than a million users globally without adhering to anti-money laundering (AML) or Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols.

The U.S. government has penalized BTC-e and Vinnik with a combined $122 million in civil money penalties for AML law violations, with $110 million against BTC-e and $12 million against Vinnik personally.

Co-operator Aliaksandr Klimenka faces similar charges of money laundering and running an unlicensed money services operation.

Despite the charges, Vinnik's legal representation indicates a plea agreement may lead to a prison sentence of less than 10 years.