Overview

Recent sanctions imposed on various nations have led to a historical peak in cryptocurrency transactions linked to illicit addresses as these blacklisted entities seek means to bypass these financial restrictions.

According to the Chainalysis 2026 crypto crime report published on Thursday, the illicit addresses received approximately $154 billion in 2025, marking a 162% increase compared to $59 billion in 2024.

Key Developments

• Sanctioned entities, particularly from Russia, known for launching the ruble-backed A7A5 token, transacted over $93.3 billion within a year through illicit means.
• The Global Sanctions Inflation Index reported nearly 80,000 sanctioned entities as of May 2025, highlighting the scale of the issue.
• An unprecedented 3,135 new sanctions were added by the US in 2024 alone.

Trends in Cryptocurrency

The report indicated that stablecoins have become pivotal in illegal transactions, constituting 84% of all illicit crypto activities. This shift parallels legitimate trends where stablecoins address practical needs in the financial landscape, such as cross-border transactions.

As the identification of illicit addresses increases, projections suggest that the value received by these addresses could continue growing into 2026. However, 99% of crypto transactions are still unrelated to illicit activities.

Conclusion

The ongoing trends indicate a significant divergence in the use of cryptocurrency for legitimate purposes versus illicit ones, with the illicit share of overall transactions still remaining below 1%.