Crime with cryptocurrencies broke a new record – Saving

Cryptocurrency crime peaked at $ 14 billion in 2021, the blockchain analyst company Chainalysis announced on Thursday, Reuters reported.

This record-breaking cryptocurrency crime comes at a time when a number of regulators around the world are calling for more power over the fast-growing digital currency sector.

The Chainalysis report states that cryptocurrencies derived from addresses of digital portfolios related to illegal activities, including fraud, dark network markets and ransoms, increased by 20% in 2021 compared to a year earlier, although the activity represents only 0.15% of the total volume of crypto transactions – the lowest so far.

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The total volume rose to 15.8 trillion dollars in 2021, which is more than five times more than a year earlier, said the US-based Chainalysis. Digital assets, from bitcoin to the so-called NFT tokens have gained immense popularity in 2021 amid growing interest in them from institutional investors and large companies.

They were drawn to the promise of quick profits advertised by cryptocurrency supporters, as well as hopes that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies offer protection against rising inflation. However, cryptocurrencies are still subject to unequal regulation, leaving investors to some extent to resort to criminal transactions.

Financial supervisors and politicians from Washington to Frankfurt are worried about the use of cryptocurrencies for money laundering, some are urging lawmakers to give these bodies more power over the industry, according to Reuters.

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“The criminal misuse of cryptocurrency creates huge obstacles to their continued adoption, increases the likelihood of government restrictions and, worst of all, innocent people around the world fall victim to them,” Chainalysis said.

The total theft of cryptocurrency has increased more than five times since 2020., with about $ 3.2 billion worth of digital currencies stolen last year. About $ 2.2 billion of these funds, or about 72% of the total, were stolen from sites of the so-called “decentralized finance” – DeFi. Decentralized finance is a form of financial relationships without the involvement of traditional financial intermediaries, based on blockchain technology.

DeFi Platform Fraud – where developers create fake investment opportunities before disappearing with investors’ money – reaching $ 7.8 billion, or an 82% jump from a year earlier, adds Chainalysis.

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