2025 has seen a dramatic increase in illicit cryptocurrency activities, with stablecoins emerging as a key element. This surge, highlighted by a Chainalysis report today, is primarily driven by a notable rise in sanctions evasion and other forms of crypto-related crimes.
While the global crypto market has seen a staggering loss of $154 billion through illegal transactions, stablecoins have played a major role in facilitating these transfers. Accounting for more than 80% of all illicit movements, stablecoins are chosen by hackers and scammers to move their assets. While stablecoins offer a seamless experience for cross-border payments and other transactions, illegal players choose them to launder money or evade sanctions.
Chainalysis Unveils the Rise of Illicit Stablecoin Transfers
According to Chainalysis, a blockchain analytics firm, the crypto space has witnessed a notable surge in illicit activity over the last year. In 2025, more than $154 billion has been moved through criminal-linked addresses. This marks a massive 162% hike from 2024, sparking widespread caution.
The Chainalysis report also highlights that the sanctioned entities are driving the surge in the illicit activity. Sanctioned addresses altogether have received a majority of the $154 billion, representing a year-over-year hike of 694%. This sanction evasion trend is led by North Korea and Russia, with the notorious DPRK group amassing about $2 billion in crypto last year.
It is worth noting that stablecoins play a major role in these illegal activities. Due to their attractive features, they are used by hackers and exploiters to launder their stolen money. The report read,
“For the past few years, stablecoins have come to dominate the landscape of illicit transactions, and now account for 84% of all illicit transaction volume. This mirrors broader ecosystem trends where stablecoins occupy a sizable and growing percentage of all crypto activity due to their practical benefits: easy cross-border transferability, lower volatility, and broader utility.”
The Growing Threat of Organized Crime
“While nation-states have been utilizing cryptocurrency for a while, it’s happening at a different scale today,” stated Andrew Fierman, head of national security intelligence at Chainalysis.
Russia’s launch of the ruble-backed A7A5 token in February 2025 marked a significant expansion of nation-state on-chain behaviour. As part of a broader effort to circumvent sanctions, the ruble-backed stablecoin facilitated over $94 billion in transactions.
Meanwhile, Iranian proxy networks transferred more than $2 billion via sanctioned wallets using stablecoins. They amassed illicit funds through money laundering, oil sales, and arms procurement with the help of stablecoins. Iran-based terror groups, such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis, have also accumulated massive amounts through illegal activities, including crypto hacks.
In addition to these state-linked actors, Chinese money laundering networks have also become a dominant force in the crypto crime space. These networks offer money laundering as a service and help illegal players to steal funds through crypto hacks, scams, fraud rings, and terrorist financiers.
Further, “full-stack” illicit infrastructure providers are becoming increasingly significant. They enable malicious groups to operate at scale. They also provide a range of services, including bulletproof hosting, domain registration, and technical platforms to evade law enforcement.
Another major concern highlighted by the report is the waning distinction between on-chain threats and violent crimes. Many believe that crypto crimes are completely detached from the physical world. But nowadays, this gap is increasingly blurred. More cases are being recorded, citing physical violence involved in stealing crypto assets.
