The cumulative value of crypto-assets stolen between January and late July 2024 exceeded $1.58 billion, 84% more than the value of assets stolen during the same period in 2023. Meanwhile, the volume of illicit crypto transactions dropped by nearly 20% since the beginning of this year.
According to Chainalysis’ mid-year report, the volume of crypto transactions identified as illicit fell 19.6% from $20.9 billion in January 2024 to $16.7 billion at the end of July. The total value of stolen crypto-assets almost doubled compared to H1 2023, from $857 million to $1.58 billion.
Analysts explain this trend by the growth of the average value of stolen assets per incident, which in turn is directly related to the rapid growth of crypto prices in 2024. This year, one incident cost the crypto market an average of $10.6 million, while in the same period last year this figure was almost 80% lower, $5.9 million. In 2024, BTC increased by about 130%, from ~$26,000 in H1 2023 to ~$60,000 in 2024. Somewhat remarkably, the analysts also noted that BTC’s share of stolen funds rose from 30% to 40% this year.
In H1 2024, the most profitable for cybercriminals was the use of ransomware. In the first six months of 2024, the number of funds paid as a result of ransomware reached $459.8 million. This compares to $449.1 million in the same period last year.
The report also shows that the number of ransomware attacks increased by 10% in 2024 compared to the previous year, but the number of successful attacks of this type decreased by 27.29%. The amount demanded by cybercriminals increased significantly. The amount of the largest ransom this year amounted to $75 million, which is 96% more than in 2023 and 335% more than in 2022.
Recently, Chainalysis analysts noted an increase in the complexity of money laundering methods using cryptocurrencies.
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