Crime
OFAC Updates Central Bank of Iran Designation Following Record $344 Million Tether Seizure amid Strait of Hormuz Toll Controversy
On April 24, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) updated its designation of…
U.S. Government Unveils Sweeping Enforcement Actions Against Southeast Asian Scam Centers and Crypto Fraud Networks
TL;DR In a massive coordinated interagency effort, the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign…
EU’s 20th Russia Sanctions Package Signals a New Era of Crypto-Specific Enforcement
TL;DR The EU’s 20th Russia sanctions package introduces a total sectoral ban on Russia-based crypto service providers and decentralized platforms,…
Inside the KelpDAO Bridge Exploit: How ~$292 Million in rsETH Was Released Against a Non-Existent Burn
TL;DR On April 18, 2026, attackers linked to North Korea’s Lazarus Group stole ~$292 million (116,500 rsETH) from KelpDAO’s LayerZero…
Sanctioned Russia-Linked Exchange Grinex Suspends Operations Following Alleged Cyberattack
TL;DR Grinex, the sanctioned successor to the Russian exchange Garantex, suspended operations yesterday following a claimed 1 billion ruble ($13.7…
Iran’s Strait of Hormuz Crypto Toll: An Evolution of Tehran’s Expanding Use of Digital Assets
TL;DR Bloomberg reported on April 1, 2026 that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was already extracting transit tolls from…
Operation Atlantic: How Public-Private Collaboration Is Freezing Millions in Crypto Scam Proceeds
Last week, Chainalysis joined a proactive joint operation co-hosted by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA), the US Secret Service,…
The Drift Protocol Hack: How Privileged Access Led to a $285 Million Loss
TL;DR On April 1, 2026, Solana’s Drift Protocol was drained of $285 million (over 50% of its TVL) in a…
From the Battlefield to the Blockchain: How Cryptocurrency Is Helping Finance the Drone Revolution
TL;DR Low-cost, commercially available drones have become central to modern conflict, allowing state and non-state actors, such as pro-Russia militias…
UK Government Designates Xinbi, Key Node in Chinese-Language Crypto-Enabled Scam Infrastructure
TL;DR The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has designated Xinbi, a major Chinese-language illicit guarantee marketplace. The designation…
The Resolv Hack: How One Compromised Key Printed $23 Million
On March 22, 2026, the Resolv DeFi protocol became the latest example of how quickly things can unravel in DeFi…
OFAC Targets North Korean IT Worker Networks Using Cryptocurrency to Fund WMD Programs
TL;DR OFAC designated six individuals and two entities for facilitating North Korean IT worker schemes that generated nearly $800 million…
Iranian Crypto Outflows Spike After Airstrikes Amid a Year of Rising On-Chain Activity
Update, 3/5/26 Earlier this week, we published an initial analysis of crypto outflows from Iranian exchanges in the immediate aftermath…
OFAC Designates Iranian-Linked Crypto Exchanges in First-Ever Action Targeting Digital Asset Firms in Iran’s Financial Sector
TL;DR OFAC designated two UK-registered crypto exchanges, Zedcex and Zedxion, for operating in Iran’s financial sector and processing cryptocurrency transactions…
Chinese Language Money Laundering Networks Emerge as Major Facilitators of the Illicit Crypto Economy, Now Driving 20% of Laundering Activity
TL;DR After emerging at the start of the pandemic, Chinese-language money laundering networks (CMLNs) now dominate known crypto money laundering…