Israel Makes Headlines: Government to Purchase BTC & ETH for Gambling Offender Compensation

In a move blending crypto adoption with judicial irony, Israeli authorities are diverting digital assets to settle gambling-related penalties.

Bitcoin and Ethereum become instruments of restitution—proving once again that blockchain permeates even the most unexpected corners of governance.

Who says crime doesn’t pay? At least not in fiat.

Siboni Turned into “an Extremely Wealthy Man”

Commenting on the matter was also a senior official, who said that “this wallet was worth about a million shekels about seven years ago. Since then, currency prices have risen dramatically, and the state will pay dearly for the negligence of an elite police unit.”

This is one of the most serious failures we’ve had, and the saddest thing – no one is taking responsibility.”

Siboni, who is a convicted gambling offender has been turned into an “extremely wealthy man,” concluded the official.

A Gambling Offender

To provide a bit of context on the profile of Siboni – he’s considered a major target when it comes to illegal gambling as part of the Lahav 433 Unit’s investiagtions.

During the two World Cups – the one in 2014 in Brazil and the one in 2018 in Russia – Siboni operated illegal betting lines for thousands of gamblers.

Suspicions place his profits to the tune of more than 100 million shekels. These were used to purchase luxury cars, apartments and other assets. The hard truth, however, is that the state had difficulty proving that the money came from criminal activity, so the majority of his property (including the crypto wallet) was returned to him.