As per a recent Chainalysis report, the notorious Lazarus Group has shifted its cryptocurrency laundering techniques to YoMix following the crackdown on the Sinbad mixer. This adjustment underscores the group’s prowess in adopting innovations and its ability to navigate increasing regulatory pressures and law enforcement efforts targeting crypto-related money laundering tools.
In 2023, there was a significant shift in the landscape of cryptocurrency money laundering. Regulatory actions led to the closure of the well-known Sinbad mixer, prompting cybercrime entities like the notorious Lazarus Group to explore alternative avenues for their illegal financial transactions. As a result, YoMix, a Bitcoin-based mixer, emerged as the successor and experienced a notable increase in adoption by these highly sophisticated actors.
Chainalysis conducted a comprehensive investigation into the crypto money laundering system, revealing a notable reduction in the overall volume of illicit funds flowing through the cryptocurrency space.
Nevertheless, by 2023, illegitimate transactions funneled $22.2 billion in cryptocurrency to diverse services, marking a notable decline from the $31.5 billion recorded in 2022. This reduction aligns with an overall decrease in crypto transaction volumes, suggesting a possible tightening of the grip on the realm of crypto-facilitated illicit activities.
Evolution Of Crypto Crime Tactics
However, despite the overall decline, there appears to be a shift in the techniques and services employed by cryptocurrency criminals for laundering their proceeds. While decentralized exchanges aren’t typically the primary destinations for illicit funds, their popularity is on the rise among FiDefi protocols and other intermediary service providers.
This shift is, to some extent, linked to the inherent transparency of DeFi protocols, enabling tracking while also introducing novel methods of obfuscation. Bridges transfer assets between blockchains, a favored tool for money laundering. Adoption has doubled criminal address funds.
The allocation of activities poses fresh challenges for law enforcement and compliance, demanding a more advanced strategy for managing the interplay of cryptocurrency transactions.
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