Former head of crypto exchange Thodex found dead in Turkish prison

⚠️ Faruk Fatih Özer, the former CEO of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange Thodex, was found dead in his cell at a prison in Tekirdağ, Turkey, according to state agency TRT. Preliminary reports suggest suicide as the main line of inquiry, though no official conclusion has been issued yet.

Özer was serving a sentence of 11,196 years, handed down in 2023, for fraud, embezzlement of customer funds, and leading a criminal organization.

From “financial prodigy” to international fugitive

Thodex was founded by Özer in 2017 under the name Koineks. The exchange quickly gained popularity in Turkey, becoming one of the country’s largest crypto trading platforms. During the 2020–2021 crypto boom, it had up to 400,000 active users, and its founder was hailed as a “next-generation genius.”

Özer leveraged massive publicity campaigns, offered generous registration bonuses, and collaborated with celebrities and political figures, embodying the spirit of the crypto-optimist era.

Collapse and escape

On April 19, 2021, Thodex users suddenly found themselves unable to withdraw funds. The management blamed “temporary technical issues” and “cyberattacks,” promising a swift fix.

However, soon trading was halted entirely, and Özer vanished. It was later discovered that he had fled Turkey—allegedly to Albania—taking a large portion of users’ funds with him.

Estimates of the stolen assets ranged from $43 million to $2 billion. Chainalysis later calculated total investor losses at approximately $2.6 billion.

The media published photos of Ozer at Istanbul Airport, where he was leaving the country with a diplomatic suitcase, while social media users compared his escape to classic financial pyramid schemes.

Arrest and record-breaking sentence

In August 2022, Özer was arrested in Albania on an Interpol warrant and extradited to Turkey in June 2023. He was convicted of fraud, money laundering, and leading a criminal enterprise.

Prosecutors had sought over 40,000 years of imprisonment, but the court settled on a “moderate” 11,196 years—essentially a life sentence without parole.

His brother and sister, who also held executive positions in the company, received similar sentences.

Impact on Turkey’s crypto market

The Thodex collapse marked a turning point for Turkey’s crypto sector. In a country where digital assets had become a refuge from the devaluing lira, the scandal severely damaged trust in local exchanges.

Following the case, the government tightened regulations, requiring exchanges to obtain licenses, disclose reserves, and comply with anti–money laundering laws. Despite this, public interest in crypto didn’t fade; in fact, the use of stablecoins and foreign platforms increased.

Expert opinions

Experts describe Ozer’s death as the final chapter of one of the most notorious frauds in Turkey’s crypto history, though its consequences for the industry are only beginning.

Emre Keskin, an analyst at CryptoWatch Turkey, notes: “After Thodex, many Turkish investors began to view centralized exchanges as unreliable and turned toward decentralized solutions and cold storage.”

Aylin Demir, professor of economics at Boğaziçi University, adds: “Özer became a symbol of unrestrained crypto-optimism. His story is a reminder that lack of regulation can turn even the most ambitious startups into ticking time bombs.”

According to Chainalysis analysts, Ozer’s death may affect the course of ongoing legal proceedings against former Thodex employees and reduce investors’ chances of recovering their losses.

💡 Thodex legacy

The story of Thodex is not only a criminal chronicle but also a lesson for the entire crypto industry: even fast-growing companies dealing with digital assets require transparency, oversight, and auditing.

Experts believe Özer’s death may serve as a “moment of truth” for Turkey’s crypto industry — a wake-up call to build a transparent legal framework to prevent another billion-dollar disaster.