Chainalysis reports a rise in crypto money laundering to $82 billion, with Chinese-language networks processing $16.1 billion in 2025.
Chainalysis has revealed a significant increase in cryptocurrency-related money laundering, with the total volume soaring from $10 billion to $82 billion between 2020 and 2025. Chinese-language networks are highlighted as the primary contributors, accounting for 20% of this total.
In an upcoming chapter of the 2026 Crypto Crime Report, Chainalysis outlines that Chinese-language money laundering networks processed $16.1 billion in illicit crypto funds in 2025, averaging about $44 million daily across more than 1,799 active wallets.
— Chainalysis (@chainalysis) January 27, 2026
Experts from Chainalysis attribute this dramatic growth to the greater availability and liquidity of digital assets, as well as a shift in laundering methods. Notably, networks leveraging messaging platforms like Telegram have surged, with their activity increasing 7,325 times compared to laundering through centralized exchanges and 1,810 times more than decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols.
In 2025, these Chinese-language networks were intricately linked to international financial movements, often aimed at bypassing sanctions, especially from countries with stringent regulations such as China.
Money Laundering Infrastructure
Chainalysis describes these networks as integrated ecosystems that facilitate various laundering processes, including transaction fragmentation and fund integration into legitimate channels. Key players in these networks include platforms like Huione and Xinbi, which provide infrastructure for asset deposits while maintaining a façade of legitimacy.
Chainalysis has categorized six primary types of operations within these networks:
- "launch point" brokers who rent accounts to assist asset flows;
- "money mule" convoys that obscure fund origins through account networks;
- shadow over-the-counter (OTC) services that exchange assets without verifying identities;
- Black U platforms that buy illegal cryptocurrency at discounted rates;
- gambling providers that launder funds through betting activities;
- mixers that operate similarly to known protocols like Tornado Cash.
Moreover, Chainalysis estimates the total illegal crypto assets turnover in 2025 to be around $154 billion, marking a 162% increase from previous periods.
