Illegal cryptocurrency transactions reached a new all-time high during 2021 and nearly doubled from the previous year, a Report by Chainalysis said. The equivalent of about $14 billion transited in 2021 through digital wallets linked to illegal activities, against $7.8 billion registered in 2020, according to the report of the specialized firm. The scams represent $ 7,800 million that with the rise of the so-called “rug pulls” cost $ 2,800 million to investors. The rug pulls, or floor move, are a virtual scam methodology, in which unscrupulous cryptocurrency developers make the price rise vertiginously, to sell it massively when it is at its peak, to then cause its collapse and finally disappear pocketing the profits of investors.
The report highlights that “these numbers do not tell the whole story, as the use of cryptocurrencies grew or at a pace never seen before”, with operations amounting to US $ 15.8 billion, in 2021, an increase of 567% compared to the previous year.
Chainalysis estimates that illegal operations account for only 0.15% of total cryptocurrency usage.” An encouraging development in the fight against cryptocurrency-related crime is the growing ability of law enforcement to directly seize illegally obtained assets,” the firm concludes.
