chainalysis

According to The Block, blockchain analytics company Chainalysis has released a latest report indicating that as the gray market peptide industry scales surpasses an annualized $100 million, leading suppliers are accelerating the adoption of Bitcoin and stablecoins as primary settlement tools.In Q1 2026, cryptocurrency inflows into the industry reached $32 million, a month-on-month surge of 159%. Due to traditional banks and credit card payment channels generally imposing bans on prescription-grade compounds and unregulated substances, a large number of Chinese chemical manufacturers are turning to cryptocurrency to complete transactions, with high-value orders particularly favoring stablecoins to avoid price volatility risks.

A recent report from blockchain analysis company Chainalysis points out that compliance standards in the cryptocurrency industry are tightening significantly, with about 47% of organizations entering the market in 2026 having pre-warning standards that can reach the strict levels of the top 10% of the industry in 2020. This indicates that the entire ecosystem is maturing rapidly, with newcomers equipped with more aggressive monitoring measures from the outset.The report shows that companies' "direct monitoring" of funds coming directly from known illegal sources has become consistent and strict, but there is still a significant gap in "indirect monitoring" of funds flowing through intermediary addresses. For example, the indirect risk warning thresholds for categories such as ransomware and fraudulent stores on cryptocurrency trading platforms are often 10 to 100 times higher than direct thresholds. The Chainalysis team points out that this gap between direct and indirect monitoring creates opportunities for illegal actors. Companies that can bridge this gap will not only enhance their regulatory defenses but also distinguish themselves as trustworthy counterparties.The report suggests that this indicates the industry is in a transitional period, having achieved specialization in direct risk management but not yet treating indirect risks with the same rigor. The elevation of industry compliance standards is a response to increasingly stringent regulations and ongoing threats from entities such as North Korean hacker groups. In 2025 alone, hackers linked to North Korea caused approximately $2 billion in cryptocurrency losses.

According to a report by the blockchain analysis platform Chainalysis, the economic and financial police department of Foggia, Italy, recently uncovered a tax evasion case. The individuals involved are suspected of using the Bitcoin Ordinals protocol and the BRC-20 token standard to create and resell tokens, concealing approximately $1.1 million (€1 million) in capital gains on-chain, with the profits continuously reinvested into new inscription operations.Chainalysis pointed out that although such emerging technological means may seem covert, the inherent transparency of blockchain leaves a permanent and immutable record of transactions. Blockchain intelligence can effectively track tax evasion by reconstructing financial networks and cross-referencing exchange declaration data. The agency warned that as new categories of digital assets continue to emerge, the gap between real on-chain wealth and declared tax status will become a key investigation target for global law enforcement agencies.

Chainalysis posted on the X platform that before the theft of THORChain, wallets suspected to be associated with the attacker had been transferring funds through Monero, Hyperliquid, and THORChain for several weeks. The attacker-associated wallets had already deposited into Hyperliquid positions via the Hyperliquid and Monero privacy bridge as early as the end of April. The funds were then exchanged for USDC and transferred to Arbitrum, and later bridged to Ethereum, with some ETH subsequently transferred to THORChain to become staked RUNE for newly added nodes, which are believed to be the source of the attack.Afterward, the attacker bridged some RUNE back to Ethereum and split it into four pathways, one of which went directly to the attacker. After being transferred through intermediate wallets, 8 ETH was sent to the final wallet receiving the stolen funds 43 minutes before the attack. The funds from the other three pathways flowed in the opposite direction. These wallets bridged ETH back to Arbitrum, deposited it into Hyperliquid, and transferred it into Monero through the same privacy bridge, with the last transaction occurring less than 5 hours before the attack began.As of Friday afternoon, the stolen funds have not yet been used, but the attacker has demonstrated their skilled cross-chain money laundering capabilities, and the Hyperliquid to Monero path may become the next move.

The prediction market platform Polymarket has partnered with blockchain analysis company Chainalysis to monitor trading activities and enforce market rules in response to concerns about insider trading and market integrity.The two parties announced on Thursday that Chainalysis will provide a comprehensive set of tools, including investigative software and on-chain monitoring systems, to identify suspicious behavior. Its models are designed to detect patterns consistent with "trading based on non-public information." This move comes as regulatory scrutiny of prediction markets is increasing. Critics argue that platforms like Polymarket may be susceptible to influence from insiders (such as political staff or corporate employees) who place "information advantage bets" before information is made public. Such behavior is illegal and heavily regulated in traditional financial markets, but regulatory definitions remain unclear in the crypto prediction market space.Polymarket's response is to enhance the transparency advantages of blockchain. Since all transactions are recorded on-chain, trading activities can be tracked and analyzed post-factum. By overlaying Chainalysis's data tools, the company hopes to identify suspicious transactions in real-time and provide relevant evidence to regulators when necessary.

Polymarket announced the launch of a comprehensive on-chain market integrity monitoring system solution to monitor trading behavior and enforce platform market compliance rules. This system will be built in collaboration with blockchain data analytics company Chainalysis, covering all DeFi trading processes on Polymarket, including real-time on-chain analysis of trading, holdings, and settlement data. It will identify potential violations through a multi-layer monitoring mechanism, focusing on insider trading and market manipulation.Polymarket stated that all its transactions are completed on a public blockchain. This collaboration will further amplify the advantages of on-chain transparency, allowing regulatory agencies and law enforcement to obtain verifiable on-chain evidence, thereby establishing a new compliance standard in the predictive market field. Polymarket founder and CEO Shayne Coplan stated that the platform has emphasized transparency and traceability since its inception, and this collaboration will further strengthen its positioning as a "trusted source of market information."

According to market news, the Korean National Tax Service has issued a tender announcement, planning to introduce cryptocurrency transaction tracking software from institutions such as Chainalysis and TRM Labs to monitor cryptocurrency transaction records in real-time, track hidden assets of suspected tax evaders, and combat tax evasion behaviors through disguised inheritance, gifting, and offshore tax evasion using cryptocurrency.The system can track approximately 70 million types of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and stablecoins, covering 45 blockchain layers. It also has the capability to identify "mixing" money laundering techniques with its "de-mixing" ability and can perform a certain degree of identity recognition for non-custodial wallets such as MetaMask and Phantom. This is the third time the National Tax Service has introduced related solutions since 2024, with plans to complete system construction in June and officially put it into use starting in July.

According to Cointelegraph, Kaitlin Martin, a senior intelligence analyst at Chainalysis, stated that shipping companies that may use cryptocurrency payments for transit fees to Iran could face serious sanction risks.Under the current sanctions framework, any payments made to the Iranian regime, including those related to key waterways, could be interpreted as "material support," putting companies at risk of violating U.S. and international restrictions.There have been previous reports that Iran may seek to collect transit fees in the form of cryptocurrency. Although not officially confirmed, U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that he would not accept any attempts by Tehran to impose tolls on shipping passing through this important waterway.

Cybersecurity company CUJO AI has officially launched a network-layer cryptocurrency investment fraud detection capability designed for network service providers (NSP), which can identify fraudulent activities that bypass application layer and platform layer protections. CUJO AI stated that modern cryptocurrency investment scams often rely on rotating domain names, wallet interactions, and social engineering tactics, making it difficult for a single platform to grasp the full picture; the network layer is a key location where such threats are concentrated.According to Chainalysis data, global losses from cryptocurrency-related scams and fraud are estimated to reach $17 billion by 2025, with the majority of victims being ordinary users rather than institutional traders.

According to Decrypt, the U.S. Secret Service will collaborate with the UK's National Crime Agency, the Ontario Provincial Police, and the Ontario Securities Commission, among other agencies, to launch an international joint operation called "Operation Atlantic," aimed at combating cryptocurrency scams such as "authorized phishing" or "pig butchering." These scams typically lure victims into granting access to their funds through online fake romantic relationships.U.S. Secret Service officials stated that the operation will identify and dismantle these scams in near real-time, preventing criminals from profiting further. The UK side noted that such scams are becoming increasingly complex, and the operation aims to protect the public through early warnings and asset protection. This collaboration builds on the "Operation Atlas" initiated by Canadian authorities in 2024. According to a Chainalysis report, cryptocurrency crime alone caused losses exceeding $17 billion last year.

According to CoinDesk, Chainalysis' latest report shows that in 2025, cryptocurrency-related illegal activities linked to sanctions surged, with sanctioned entities receiving at least $104 billion in cryptocurrency, a 700% increase from 2024, driving the total illegal on-chain transaction volume for the year to $154 billion.Countries like Russia, Iran, and North Korea, which are under U.S. and European sanctions, are integrating cryptocurrency into their national financial strategies to circumvent the traditional banking system. The report specifically notes that the ruble-pegged stablecoin A7A5 is a primary channel for sanctioned Russian enterprises, processing $93.3 billion in transactions in less than a year, serving as a settlement avenue for cross-border trade by sanctioned Russian companies.This token is associated with the exchanges Grinex and Meer, having processed billions of dollars in transactions before being sanctioned by the U.S. and Europe. A7A5 also offers "instant exchange" services, allowing tokens to be converted into mainstream U.S. dollar stablecoins with minimal KYC checks, having processed over $2.2 billion in transactions to date, effectively enabling sanctioned entities to enter the broader crypto economy.Addresses linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran account for over 50% of the value received by Iranian services, transferring over $3 billion in funds. North Korea remains the largest actor in cyber theft, stealing over $2 billion in cryptocurrency in 2025. Stablecoins currently account for about 84% of illegal transaction volume.

According to Coindesk, blockchain analysis company Chainalysis stated that Iran's cryptocurrency ecosystem will reach $7.78 billion by 2025, with a growth rate surpassing the previous year.Iran legalized cryptocurrency mining in 2019, allowing licensed operators to use subsidized electricity and sell the mined bitcoins to the central bank. Recent estimates indicate that Iran accounts for between 2% and 5% of the global Bitcoin mining hash rate. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as the country's main military force, has since deepened its influence in the cryptocurrency sector.Chainalysis estimates that by the fourth quarter of 2025, addresses associated with the IRGC will account for over 50% of Iran's total cryptocurrency inflows, with amounts received last year exceeding $3 billion. Another analysis by Elliptic found that the Central Bank of Iran had accumulated at least $507 million in USDT by 2025, which could help stabilize the rial exchange rate and facilitate trade. However, this effort has largely failed, with data showing that the rial has depreciated by over 96% against the dollar. Meanwhile, ordinary Iranians have begun to turn to Bitcoin. During recent protests and internet outages, the amount of Bitcoin withdrawn from local exchanges to personal wallets surged dramatically.

According to a report by TheDefiant, blockchain forensics company Chainalysis has released a report stating that Chinese networks account for about 20% of the total $82 billion in cryptocurrency laundering activities in 2025, primarily operating on Telegram and related "guarantee" platforms. In 2025 alone, Chinese laundering networks processed over $16 billion in funds, equivalent to about $44 million per day, involving approximately 1,800 active wallets.

According to CoinDesk, cryptocurrency analysis firm Chainalysis stated in its latest report that losses from cryptocurrency scams and fraud could reach as high as $17 billion in 2025.Among these, impersonation scams have seen a year-on-year increase of 1400%, while AI-assisted scams are 4.5 times more profitable than traditional scams.

Chainalysis released a research report indicating that by 2025, the activities of nations in the cryptocurrency sector tracked by them will have significantly increased. Illegal organizations are now operating large-scale on-chain infrastructures that assist transnational crime networks in acquiring goods and services, as well as laundering their illegally obtained cryptocurrencies.Data shows that in 2025, illegal cryptocurrency transactions will reach at least $154 billion. This represents a 162% increase from the previous year, primarily due to a 694% surge in amounts received by sanctioned entities. However, even if the amounts received by sanctioned entities remain the same as the previous year, 2025 will still be a record year for cryptocurrency crime, as activities in most categories of illegal crime have increased. Additionally, stablecoins dominate the illegal trading sector, currently accounting for 84% of all illegal transaction volume.

Chainalysis pointed out in the "2025 Cryptocurrency Adoption Index Report" that from July 2024 to June 2025, Bitcoin will attract over $1.2 trillion in fiat funds, firmly establishing itself as the preferred asset for fiat entry into the cryptocurrency market.Ethereum attracted approximately $724 billion during the same period, while Layer 1 public chain tokens and stablecoins ranked third and fourth with $564 billion and $497 billion, respectively.

According to DLnews, Chainalysis publicly responded to Binance's criminal analysis report using its data. In November, Binance claimed that, based on Chainalysis data, only 0.018% to 0.023% of the trading volume on the leading exchange was directly related to illegal wallets, and that Binance performed better than the market. However, Chainalysis clarified that the analysis did not cover all categories of illegal activities (such as ransomware and hacking theft) and only accounted for "direct contact," excluding funds transferred through personal wallets.Such "transfer wallet" strategies are widely used by cryptocurrency criminals to cover their tracks.