Trump 5 6Anyone who does not like crypto can use this one argument to support his case: Crypto supports criminal activity. However, what part of the stories we hear are even correct?
Does Crypto support criminal activity?
The mass media has been discouraging users from buying onto crypto by telling them that the assets are always linked with shady dealings. This causes fear and makes a lot of people avoid assets.
Although this stereotype may not be a whole truth, still there is some truth to it. However, each and every source of value has been linked with criminal activity, be it gold or fiat currency. Regardless, criminal activity through crypto is just a small fraction of the crime funding that is done through conventional means.
Just recently, a cryptoanalysis company published a report on XRP trading. The report suggested that XRP worth 400 million dollars was used for funding criminal activity. Although it represents a small number when compared to total transactions conducted on the system, the number is still a significant one. This is especially true for XRP, as it was designed to support institutional financial systems.
It is true that Bitcoin and other crypto-assets provide much greater privacy than other means, but it is still pretty easy to track a trade back to its owner du to a private address and KYC verifications. However, illegal trades often slip by unnoticed.
Regardless, we cannot ignore that the US dollar is an even greater channel of crime funding than Bitcoin.
Statistics from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime revealed that money laundering done through USD far outweighed the number of dollars spent in Bitcoin on the darknet. It was revealed that for every dollar in BTC spent on the darknet; there were 800 dollars laundered through fiat currency.
In the end, crypto, just like the dollar, gold, and every other source of value, will continue to be used for illegal purposes. However, such usage can be minimized by tracking blockchain networks to ensure such trades do not occur.
