Chainalysis

Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao “@CZ ” has officially been appointed as strategic adviser to Pakistan’s newly launched Crypto Council, as confirmed by Pakistan’s Finance Ministry and reported by Bloomberg on April 7. CZ has years of crypto leadership as a CEO of world #1 crypto exchange. Such a well experienced person can unlock the potential of digital assets for a country.
Pakistan Gets Serious About Crypto
After years of regulatory issues, #Pakistan has finally legalized crypto. The Crypto Council, led by Bilal bin Saqib is building a clear regulatory framework. According to Saqib, “Pakistan is done sitting on the sidelines.”
Why CZ’s Appointment Matters
CZ isn’t just a crypto man, he is leading the crypto world. His strategic experience from building Binance into the world’s largest crypto exchange can help Pakistan:
Design practical, investor-friendly regulationsAttract global capital and blockchain infrastructurePosition itself as a regional Web3 leader

 A Strategic Market
Pakistan ranks 9th in #Chainalysis ’ 2024 crypto adoption index for the Central and Southern Asia and Oceania (CSAO) region. The country’s young, Web3-native population makes it a natural fit for digital innovation. It is just like 
Demand for Stablecoins and Remittance Use
With the rupee’s volatility, stablecoins have quietly become essential. A 2023 survey revealed 33% of Pakistani crypto users hedge against currency devaluation. And as formal remittance flows rise, blockchain rails can make them faster and cheaper.
Crypto as Economic Infrastructure
Pakistan's high-growth, low-cost environment offers the best ground for crypto development to grow—especially with support from global leaders like CZ. His involvement can shape the way for better adoption, new job creation, and a stronger tech ecosystem.
What Comes Next
All eyes are on the #pakistancryptocouncil . How will they navigate regulation and innovation? But with CZ on board, Pakistan just took a bold step toward shaping its future in the global crypto economy.
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A #chainalysis report reveals that the United States is losing ground in stablecoin adoption due to regulatory uncertainty, even as demand for US dollar-backed #Stablecoins soars globally. In 2024, stablecoin transactions on US platforms fell below 40%, down from 50% last year, while non-US platforms surpassed 60%, driven by emerging markets like Argentina and Turkey. Tether’s CEO #PaoloArdoino noted that demand is strongest in regions with unstable currencies. With the US lagging on #stablecoin regulations, other regions are attracting stablecoin projects, putting pressure on US policymakers to step up and protect its leadership in digital finance.
#MemeCoinTrending $USDC

The evolution of cryptocurrency crimes in the age of artificial intelligence and advanced technologies
A recent report by Chainalysis titled 'Cryptocurrency Crime Report 2025' revealed significant shifts in the world of digital financial crimes, as these crimes have become more complex and advanced than ever before. The report indicated that a new era dominated by AI-supported fraud, money laundering through stablecoins, and effective cybercriminal group activities has already begun.

On March 1, 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh signed Directive 05 on solutions to promote economic growth, which includes a noteworthy point: requiring the Ministry of Finance and the State Bank to propose a legal framework for managing digital assets within March.
This is seen as a groundbreaking step, helping Vietnam keep pace with the development trends of the digital currency market, while creating clearer mechanisms to protect investors, attract businesses, and leverage the potential from the blockchain sector.

The European Union (EU) has included Garantex, a Moscow-based cryptocurrency exchange, in its 16th round of sanctions against Russia. According to the EU, Garantex facilitated transactions related to cybercrime, black markets, and ransomware groups like Conti, making it a key link in money laundering and sanctions evasion.
Garantex – The Bridge That Helps Russia Evade Sanctions
According to a statement from the European Council, #Garantex was sanctioned for its links with Sberbank, Tinkoff Bank and Alfa-Bank – three Russian banks that have been on the EU sanctions list since 2014.

Anyway, Bybit has released a report on what happened with their hack in the first place. Point by point, the picture is as follows:
- First they hacked the comp of one of the developers of #safe (a multisig wallet provider), through which Bybit signed their trances.
- Then Lazarus injected a malicious script directly into one of the files Safe stored on their servers in AWS (specifically S3).
- This script spoofed transactions at the signature stage. That is, you sign one thing, but in fact another thing is already flying out.
- And the code worked only if the transaction went to one of two addresses: the Bybit contract and some murky test address, which, most likely, was controlled by the hackers themselves.
- As soon as the transaction went away, the hackers immediately cleaned up their tracks, deleted the script and uploaded a clean version of the file back.
- As a result of the investigation, it became clear that the Bybit infrastructure itself was not affected, it was Safe that was affected. Safe's contracts were not touched either, the whole attack went through the interface.
Safe from its side gave minimum information, they promised to tell more after the investigation is completed.
#cz_binance also reacted negatively to Safe's report, because nothing is really clear from it.
Anyway, it's another reminder that regular users have nothing to hope for at all except their paranoia hehehe 🥹
#chainalysis btw posted a graph of how Lazarus are trying to launder money. What do you think? Isn't that art? 🥲

In recent days, both #memecoin TRUMP and MELANIA have created a frenzy in the crypto community, attracting significant interest from investors. However, according to analysis from Chainalysis, the actual profit picture is not as rosy for most participants.
"Whales" feast, retail investors lament
Data from #Chainalysis shows that 94% of TRUMP and MELANIA supply is held by the top 40 wallets, creating a high concentration of assets. Among them, 60 "whale" wallets have earned over 10 million USD each.

The cryptocurrency industry remains an attractive target for cybercrime. Chainalysis’ “The 2024 Crypto Crime Report” shows a decline in cryptocurrency-related criminal activity. The amount of digital assets received at illegal addresses fell to $24.2 billion last year, compared to $39.6 billion recorded in 2022.
However, not everything is as good as it seems at first glance. Analysts’ data indicate the growth of darknet market revenues and frauds related to novels. We will discuss this and other report highlights in today’s article.
The Growth Of the Darknet Market
Profits earned through darknet marketplaces totaled at least $1.7 billion in 2023, up from 2022, when the government shut down the world’s largest darknet marketplace, Hydra. While no marketplace has taken Hydra’s place, the report found that smaller markets thrive by serving specific niches and developing more “specialized areas.”
Analysts note that the Mega Darknet market is leading the way with more than $500 billion in cryptocurrency inflows. However, the revenues generated by darknet markets have not yet returned to the peak levels seen in the Hydra era.
“We expect law enforcement agencies to continue to investigate and dismantle darknet markets, especially given that many offer fentanyl products for sale.” the report notes.
Funding of Criminal Organizations
Chainalysis analysts note that assessing terrorist financing is extremely important, but also challenging. The use of cryptocurrencies by criminal organizations accounts for a small share of illegal transactions, but this issue is a constant concern.
The ability to trace transactions makes cryptocurrencies a less favorable tool for financing the activities of illegal groups.
A comprehensive approach that includes not only intelligence but also regulatory and ethical considerations, as well as factual accuracy and due diligence, is essential. Cryptocurrency exchanges also play an important role in this regard. They have a strict anti-money laundering policy and actively comply with the requirements of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF).
The report also describes how terrorist organizations use cryptocurrency transactions. It notes that financial companies have become key intermediaries for illegal cryptocurrency transactions for groups such as Hezbollah.
“Government agencies with access to off-chain intelligence are more likely to detect these activities, and can leverage blockchain analysis tools to further investigate these financial flows,” wrote Chainalysis.
Scale of Crypto-Romance Fraud
The report says that income from thefts decreased by 29.2%, but fraud tactics related to romantic relationships are becoming more common.
“This is especially concerning when we factor in that romance scams have the worst impact on victims of all scam types, based on average payment size,” Chainalysis wrote.
The company’s data shows that the average payout in romance scams was $4,593. Given that victims often make multiple payments to the same address, the average loss per victim is usually much higher.
Artificial Intelligence As a New Tool For Crypto Fraud
According to Cryptonews, Eric Jardine, head of cybercrime research at Chainalysis, summarized the growth and decline of illegal blockchain activity in 2023 and predicted what tactics criminals will use next.
He noted that discussions are already underway on how new technologies can affect cryptocurrency crime, especially large language models (LLMs).
Artificial intelligence could have threatening implications for romance fraud, also known as “pig butchering scams”. They start with seemingly innocent contacts that then develop into fabricated relationships that the fraudster uses to gain financial gain.
While artificial intelligence benefits the crypto industry, it can also be a dangerous tool. Romantic fraud is not the only thing that AI can threaten. There have already been cases when documents created by artificial intelligence bypassed KYC checks. Such situations not only cause security problems but also create new “opportunities” for fraudsters.
Moreover, the creation of deepfakes by artificial intelligence has long been a serious problem. There have been numerous cases when thieves used deepfakes to steal user funds. Therefore, even with all the advantages of integrating AI and blockchain, one should be vigilant and not forget about the downside.
Summary
Even though the Chainalysis report showed a decrease in criminal activity, the situation is still not safe. After all, despite the decline, revenues from darknet and romance fraud continue to flourish. In addition, a new danger for cryptocurrency users is the growing threat from artificial intelligence. Despite the positive developments in reducing cryptocurrency crime, several problems and threats remain relevant to the industry.
#chainalysis #AISecurity #ArtificialInteligence

On January 13, 2025, #Chainalysis , the world's leading blockchain analytics company, announced the completion of the acquisition of Alterya, a security startup using AI Agent technology, for $150 million. This is a strategic move to enhance the ability to detect and prevent fraud in the financial and cryptocurrency sectors.
Alterya Where are you?
Founded: 2022 in Israel by Elad Fouks and Shahaf Gonen.
Funding: Backed by $9.8 million from funds like Battery Ventures, Y Combinator, NFX, and Nyca.