Over half a billion in crypto loot laundered via Tornado Cash in 2024: report
Greater than 60% of ETH deposits to Twister Money in 2024 originated from high-risk sources, together with accounts linked to main crypto hacks.
In line with a World Ledger report shared with crypto.information, over $552 million in stolen cryptocurrency was laundered through cryptocurrency mixing service Twister Money between Jan.1 and Nov. 27.
Twister Money acquired a complete of 457,768 ETH, valued at round $1.64 billion at present costs, throughout this era. Nearly all of these funds got here from high-risk sources, and over 56% of the whole quantity was linked to crypto hacks that occurred in 2023 and 2024.
This can be a noticeable leap from 2023, when Twister Money dealt with 314,740 ETH in withdrawals.
The WazirX hack in July was the most important contributor this 12 months, with the attacker funneling 61,698 ETH, price round $217.2 million, via the blending service.
Funds from the Heco Bridge hack got here second, with 52,281 ETH ($189.1 million) laundered. The hack initially transpired in 2023, however the attacker laundered the funds in March this 12 months.
Equally, hackers behind the Poloniex breach funneled 18,874 ETH ($68.4 million) via Twister Money. In the meantime, 12,930 ETH ($46.8 million) got here from the Orbit Chain exploit.
Lastly, the Penpie exploit added 11,261 ETH, price $40.8 million, to the mixer’s illicit transactions.
Twister Money was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2022 for its position in facilitating cash laundering. The regulator alleged that since 2019, the service processed over $7 billion in illicit funds, together with $455 million linked to North Korea’s Lazarus Group.
Not too long ago, a U.S. Courtroom dominated that the Treasury overstepped its authority by sanctioning a few of Twister Money’s immutable sensible contracts.
The World Ledger report warned that this ruling creates a “harmful precedent” that would hinder world efforts to fight monetary crime within the crypto house, stating that “dangerous actors might launder even bigger quantities of cryptocurrency” as regulators face challenges imposing compliance.
The choice might additionally shake investor confidence and immediate regulators to impose stricter guidelines, “which might imply official companies face heightened scrutiny and tighter reporting necessities,” the report added.
