In the epic US-Russian prisoner swap last summer, Vladimir Putin brought home an assassin, spies, and another prized ally: the man behind one of the biggest insider trading cases of all time.
Vladislav Klyushin, a Russian tech executive, was convicted in the U.S. for his role in a $93 million insider trading scheme involving hacking and wire fraud. Sentenced to nine years in prison, he was among 24 individuals exchanged in a high-profile U.S.-Russia prisoner swap in August 2024. Klyushin, who had close ties to Russian government agencies through his IT company, M13, was seen as a valuable asset for Moscow. His case highlights the broader tensions between the U.S. and Russia, where individuals are often used as bargaining chips in diplomatic negotiations.