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Elliptic’s report reveals how the Huione Guarantee marketplace facilitated massive money laundering and cyber scams using Tether (USDT) transactions.
Huione Guarantee, an online marketplace operated by the Cambodian conglomerate Huione Group, has been implicated in facilitating online scams in Southeast Asia. According to the latest Elliptic Research report, the platform engaged in transactions surpassing $11 billion, a significant portion of which is linked to money laundering and cyber scams.
Dr. Tom Robinson, co-founder and chief scientist at Elliptic, explained to Cointelegraph that the team could “quantify” the cryptocurrency transactions due to “the transparency of the blockchain.” This transparency allows these crypto transactions to be tracked and blocked, a capability not possible with traditional payment methods.
Huione Guarantee’s marketplace operates primarily in Chinese and involves thousands of instant messaging app channels, each managed by separate merchants. These merchants offer various services fundamental to the operation of cyber scams, including selling personal data, money laundering, and software and web development for scam websites. The platform also offers tools and equipment utilized for the imprisonment and torture of workers in scam compounds.
While the platform uses payment methods such as bank transfers and payment apps, it predominantly uses Tether (USDT), which is easier to track than traditional fiat flows.
Elliptic’s investigation into Huione Guarantee led to the labeling of hundreds of crypto addresses associated with the platform and its merchants. Dr. Robinson told Cointelegraph that businesses could use blockchain analytics “to ensure that they or their customers are not transacting with services such as Huione Guarantee.”
“We have labeled several hundred addresses in our tools that are used by these entities, and our customers can screen transactions and wallets for links to them.”
This identification enables exchanges and other businesses to screen transactions and prevent the continued laundering of illicit funds. “Law enforcement can trace these payments and pursue those responsible for these scams. Crypto is a weak point of those scams that make use of it, which can be used to help bring those responsible to justice,” added Dr. Robinson.
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