Illicit cryptocurrency activity is diverse, with illicit cryptocurrency volumes for 2024 expected to exceed $51 billion, according to a new report.

While the total size identified to date is $40.9 billion, historical trends suggest that this number will grow as more wallet addresses are linked to criminal activity. According to According to Chainalogy's Crypto Crime Report 2025.

The report highlights an annual growth rate of 25% in illicit activity between reporting periods since 2020.

“$40.9 billion were received from known illicit addresses today, but we estimate the total may be closer to $51 billion given historical trends,” the report notes.

This year's trends point to increasing professionalism within the cryptocurrency crime ecosystem, with the emergence of large-scale cross-chain services to support money laundering and other illicit activities. One notable example is Huione Guarantee, an online marketplace that offers a money laundering service

group recently Fired Its stablecoin, USDH, to evade regulatory scrutiny.

Stablecoins dominate various illicit activities

According to the report, stablecoins It now represents 63% of the total volume of illicit transactions, according to the report. This dominance reflects broader trends in the use of cryptocurrencies, with stablecoins being widely adopted for legitimate purposes such as remittances and cross-border payments.

However, ransomware attacks, stolen funds, and scams are still prevalent. North Korean hackers They were responsible For $1.34 billion of the $2.2 billion in cryptocurrencies stolen this year, primarily through private key compromises. Scams are also becoming more sophisticated, incorporating AI-driven tactics such as personalized sextortion schemes.

While dark web market activity and scam shop sizes have declined, ransomware groups have continued to make hundreds of millions. Law enforcement efforts, including the removal of the anonymous global payment system, have disrupted many operations but have not eliminated their existence.

Although the percentage of illicit activity compared to the total on-chain volume has declined – to 0.14% in 2024 – experts believe these numbers will rise as data attribution improves.