NEW YORK—A new analysis of decentralized finance (DeFi) reveals money laundering in the sector has grown by 263% in the first two quarters of 2022.
According to a study by CryptoMonday, DeFi protocols have been conduits of up to 69% of funds associated with illicit activity, a significant upsurge from 19% in 2021, reported OODA Loop in its analysis.
“Bad actors are showing a growing preference for Defi protocols in executing their nefarious plans,” CryptoMonday CEO Jonathan Merry said. “While illicit activity within the entire crypto ecosystem has significantly decreased, it’s in the ascendency within the Defi space. The sector seems to be going through the same teething challenges that crypto faced a while back, which explains that uptick in the last couple of years.”
According to the report, the primary crimes here are stealing funds through exploits and misusing DeFi protocols to launder funds.