Crypto Crime Falls in China, Rises in Hong Kong, Reports Reveal – Bitcoin News

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Cryptocurrency transactions in China linked to criminal activity have declined significantly over the past two years, a new report suggests. At the same time, its Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is seeing an increase in crypto-related crime this year, with authorities attributing the increase to the popularity of crypto investments.

Chinese crime-related crypto transactions drop, according to Chainalysis

China has been a leader in the global crypto space, not only because of its control over much of Bitcoin’s hashrate, but also in terms of the activity of its crypto companies and users. With the government’s current offensive on decentralized money, however, including a crackdown on cryptocurrency mining and trading, the role of the People’s Republic is likely to diminish. This has already happened with China’s share of crypto-based crime, according to a report from Chainalysis.

Between April 2019 and June 2021, Chinese crypto addresses sent over $ 2.2 billion in digital currency to addresses related to illicit activities such as scams and darknet markets, and received over $ 2.0 billion dollars, the blockchain forensics firm revealed on Tuesday. But the country’s transaction volume with such addresses declined significantly over the two-year period. This trend holds true both in terms of value and in comparison to other nations, the research says. Chainalysis commented:

While China remains one of the top-ranked countries for illicit transaction volume, it beat all others by a large margin, suggesting that cryptocurrency-related crime in the country has declined.

Most of China’s illicit cryptocurrency flows have been linked to scams, the report notes. Much of the drop, according to its authors, is due to the absence of large-scale Ponzi schemes like the Plustoken 2019 scam, the proceeds of which have often been laundered via Chinese platforms. Quoted by Reuters, the global public sector technology director at Chainalysis Gurvais Grigg explained:

This is likely due to both the awareness raised by PlusToken and the crackdown in the region.

Other crypto-crime-related fund movements have been linked to money laundering, often involving the OTC offices of major digital asset exchanges, as well as fentanyl trafficking – with China being a plaque revolving door for the global pain reliever trade, in many cases. facilitated by cryptocurrency transactions.

Hong Kong records peak in crypto-related criminal cases

Meanwhile, Hong Kong officials have identified an opposite trend. As the mainland puts more pressure on the crypto space, criminal activity involving cryptocurrency in the city has reached record levels this year, according to a report from crypto media Forkast.

Almost 500 criminal cases were registered in the first half of 2021, the publication said. This year’s losses amount to HK $ 214 million ($ 27.5 million), almost double the total of last year.

Law enforcement officials attributed the increase to the growing popularity of crypto investments in China’s Special Administrative Region. Another major factor is people who spend more time online during the Covid-19 pandemic, as it has given crooks more opportunities to lure individuals into fraudulent schemes.

Money laundering, investment scams, theft, and face-to-face transactions are the most common sources of crypto-crime in Hong Kong. The report also notes that the city is not the only jurisdiction affected by the increase in crypto crime, indicating an average annual increase of 300% in similar cases recorded in the United States between 2017 and 2020.

What do you think of the conclusions of the two reports? Let us know in the comments section below.

Tags in this story case, Chainalysis, China, Chinese, Crackdown, Crypto, Crypto addresses, crypto crime, crypto transactions, crypto based, crypto related, Cryptocurrency, Hong Kong, Illicit, Ponzi schemes, report, Reports, Scams, Study, Operations

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