According to a new report from Chainalysis, 270 blockchain addresses are responsible for laundering 55% of all cryptocurrency associated with criminal activity. By 2020, it is expected that this group will receive 75% of all funds associated with illegal cryptocurrency. While this is a significant number, it should be noted that criminal groups have used a wider range of services three years ago.
270 service deposit address accounts for 55% of illicit cryptocurrency funds
According to the Crypto Crime Report, 270 service deposit addresses are being used to launder money using cryptocurrency. These accounts handle a large portion of the illicit cryptocurrency funds. Whether these services are operating in the shadows or are owned by criminals is unclear, but it’s clear that there is a large volume of money flowing through these accounts.
The amount of money being laundered through these addresses is staggering. The report estimates that up to $1.3 billion in digital assets is laundered through these addresses every year. Some of these service deposit addresses may be controlled by criminals and others may operate inside larger exchanges. It’s unclear what causes the money laundering, but it’s clear that the influx of money to these services is increasing the amount of time it takes to trace the funds.
A new study by Chainalysis found that just 270 service deposit addresses account for more than 50% of all cryptocurrency money laundering activities. This is staggering, considering that only a fraction of all cryptocurrency is traded for illicit purposes. It also showed that money laundering is highly concentrated, with only a small number of illicit transactions. Chainalysis estimates that 270 service deposit addresses will receive up to $1.3 billion in illicit cryptocurrency funds by 2020, with 24 of these addresses receiving over $500 million.
The majority of the illicit cryptocurrency funds are being sent to a small number of companies and organizations. The five largest service deposit address providers account for nearly 60% of all illicit cryptocurrency funds, while the other two-thirds are being laundered by a few service providers. Extortion software-related addresses, for example, will make up the bulk of these illicit cryptocurrency funds by 2020.
270 service deposit address received 75% of criminally-linked cryptocurrency funds in 2020
In the first half of 2020, 270 service deposit addresses will have received 55% of the criminally-linked cryptocurrency funds. In addition, another 270 service deposit addresses will have received more than half of the money in this period. In all, 1,867 service deposit addresses are expected to receive 75% of the criminally-linked cryptocurrency funds in 2020. Many of these deposit addresses are operated by third-party service providers, such as over-the-counter brokers. These third-party services will help cybercriminals launder money through multiple exchanges.
This is not a small amount of money. Just 0.057 BTC from the VCE 7 account is enough to fund the purchase of a 500 Walmart gift card. The money was sent to an address in Russia. The account was also registered with a cloud-based service provider in New York City, Cloud Provider 1.
The Central Reserve Bank and the Banking, Insurance and Pension Fund Manager Agency have not supervised any cryptocurrency-related activity in Colombia. The Government has also urged banks to deactivate their cryptocurrency-related accounts. This has created an environment in which cryptocurrency-oriented businesses cannot operate.