Cryptocurrency hackers have been returning to their roots to targeting centralized exchanges amid a spike in the Bitcoin price in 2024.
A new report indicates that while overall illicit transactions in cryptocurrency markets declined in 2024, certain types of crypto-related criminal activity rose.
Aggregate illicit activity in crypto has dropped 19.6% year-to-date (YTD), falling from $20.9 billion to $16.7 billion by July 2024, according to the first part of the mid-year crypto crime update by Chainalysis released on Aug. 15.
Chainalysis found that legitimate crypto activity has been growing faster than illicit activity onchain in 2024, particularly due to positive industry events like the adoption of spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US.
