Chainalysis came up with Crypto Crime report 2022, and unveiled the biggest threats to cryptocurrencies in 2021 in the form of scams. In the preview of its Crypto Crime report, Chainalysis explained the rise in scams in 2021 compared to 2020. The report was published on December 16, 2021. The report found that scams were the largest form of cryptocurrency-based crime by transaction volume, with above $7.7 billion worth of cryptocurrency stolen from victims worldwide.
An overview of the cryptocurrency crimes in 2021 highlighted by Chainalysis :
An overview of the cryptocurrency crimes in 2021 highlighted by Chainalysis :
- Cryptocurrency scams rose to 81% compared to 2020.
- In 2020, scamming activity decreased considerably compared to 2019, mainly due to the absence of any large-scale
Ponzi schemes. - In 2021, a Ponzi scheme named
Finiko , primarily targeting Russian speakers throughout Eastern Europe, stole more than $1.1 billion from victims. - Another scam that led to an increase in scam revenue in 2021 were rug pulls.
- Rug pulls, where crypto developers abandon a project and run away with the investor funds, were particularly common in the
DeFi ecosystem. - In the year 2021, the scams did not typically follow up the sustained price growth in popular cryptocurrencies as happened from 2017-2020.
- The relationship between asset prices and scamming activity remained constant and even decreased irrespective of the price of the cryptocurrencies in 2021.
- The new and less savvy users were more prone to be attracted to cryptocurrency’s growth than the…
