The use of centralized crypto exchanges for laundering illicit funds is on the decline, with Chinese-language money laundering networks now being used more than ever, according to Chainalysis.
Chainalysis said in a report on Tuesday that informal service-based networks offered through Chinese-speaking channels have a wide variety of laundering-as-a-service businesses that use money mules, informal over-the-counter trade desks, and gambling platforms to mix and swap crypto.
The networks emerged during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, and now “dominate known crypto money laundering activity.”
Centralized crypto exchanges have made strides to beef up customer checks and security in the last few years, as regulators globally have tightened rules on crypto platforms to crack down on illicit crypto transactions.
Chinese-language networks see 20% of illicit crypto flows
In the last five years, Chainalysis estimated that the Chinese-language networks have processed roughly 20% of tracked illicit crypto funds, coinciding with a steady decline in the use of centralized exchanges, which it said is because “exchanges can freeze funds.”
Chainalysis said that “compared to other laundering endpoints” since 2020, inflows to identified Chinese-language networks grew 7,325 times faster than those to centralized exchanges.
“While [Chinese-language networks] are by no means the only facilitator of on-chain laundering, Chinese-language Telegram-based services now account for a disproportionate share of the attributed global on-chain money laundering landscape,” it added.
On-chain laundering ecosystem is growing
The on-chain money laundering ecosystem has also seen significant growth, with Chainalysis estimating that over $82 billion in illicit funds were laundered in 2025, up from $10 billion in 2020.
The Chinese-language networks were responsible for $16 billion, or roughly $44 million per day, it said, and a key driver behind the growth is the increasing accessibility and adoption of crypto.
“This substantial topline growth reflects the growing accessibility and liquidity of cryptocurrencies, as well as a fundamental shift in how this laundering activity occurs and by whom,” Chainalysis added.
Law enforcement needs to upskill
Chainalysis said that law enforcement needs to target the illicit operators and vendors, along with their advertising venues, to disrupt on-chain money laundering.
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Tom Keatinge, the director of the Centre for Finance & Security at the think tank the Royal United Services Institute, told Chainalysis, “there is a chasm in most countries between the capabilities of criminals and law enforcement when it comes to crypto use.”
“Whilst blockchain tracing companies have provided welcome assistance in some cases, this capacity building is just the tip of the iceberg,” he said.
Keatinge added that a “systemic global effort to upskill the crypto capabilities of law enforcement around the world and create better information sharing mechanisms is urgently needed.”
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