Report: Illicit Crypto Addresses Obtained $14 Billion in 2021, Solely 0.15% of Transaction Quantity Related With Crime

In line with the newest information from Chainalysis, the whole cryptocurrency worth acquired by illicit addresses grew to a brand new all-time excessive of $14 billion in 2021. Though the brand new all-time excessive is nearly twice the $7.8 billion that was recorded in 2020, it represents simply 0.15% of the 2021 cryptocurrency transaction quantity.

Proportion of Funds Despatched to Illicit Addresses Falling

The worth of cryptocurrency-related crimes recorded in 2021 surged to a brand new all-time excessive of $14 billion, a determine that’s virtually double the $7.8 billion which was acquired by so-called illicit addresses within the yr 2020. Nonetheless, this improve within the worth of funds transferred to illicit addresses remains to be a lot decrease than the typical progress of the crypto economic system, the newest Chainalysis information has proven.

In a latest weblog publish breaking down the crypto economic system’s 2021 transaction quantity of $15.8 trillion, the blockchain evaluation agency Chainalysis asserts that the expansion in worth of funds transferred to illicit addresses shouldn’t be a sign that the house is now dominated by criminals. Reasonably, this progress could also be a touch of simply how far the crypto economic system has expanded in 12 months.

As an instance, the weblog publish factors to the 567% progress in crypto transaction quantity which the evaluation agency is linking to the rising adoption of cryptocurrencies. Chainalysis additionally provides its viewpoint on the rising hole between illicit exercise quantity and legit quantity:

Actually, with the expansion of legit cryptocurrency utilization far outpacing the expansion of legal utilization, illicit exercise’s share of cryptocurrency transaction quantity has by no means been decrease.

Crypto Crime Impedes Adoption

To assist its place that illicit exercise’s share of cryptocurrency transaction quantity is on the wane, Chainalysis factors to the information which exhibits that crime-related addresses solely accounted for 0.15% of 2021 volumes. This determine is decrease than the 0.62% recorded in 2020 and the three.37% that was recorded in 2019.

Regardless of noting the low proportion of legal crypto transfers relative to the general transaction volumes, Chainalysis nonetheless concedes the “legal abuse of cryptocurrency creates enormous impediments for continued adoption.” The publish argues that such abuse usually “heightens the chance of restrictions being imposed by governments, and worst of all victimizes harmless folks all over the world.”

The weblog publish additionally instructed that regulation enforcement companies have gotten more proficient at combating cryptocurrency-based crimes. It cites the indictment of a number of crypto funding scams by the U.S. Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee (CFTC) in addition to OFAC’s sanctioning of two Russia-based cryptocurrency platforms.

What are your ideas on this story? Inform us what you suppose within the feedback part beneath.