It is often said that the main flaw of the crypto industry is the possibility of its misuse in order to commit new kinds of crime, launder money, smuggle goods and use crypto as a means of payment in fraudulent schemes. In spite of all this, during the 6th Global Conference on Criminal Finances and Cryptocurrencies in the Hague, digital currencies were named as tools in the fight against organised crime.
The rapid rise of digital assets’ usage is seen in an increasing number of countries. The objective of the discussions was to create a joint effort to uncover the people who use cryptocurrencies to commit crimes.
Despite the difficulty of investigations, there is a main characteristic – a digital trace. Most cryptocurrencies operate via public blockchains, the analysis of which is useful when fighting criminals. The Europol representatives stated that the transparency of blockchain helps investigate financial crimes.
Those in attendance agreed that tools in this field need to be adopted for such tasks and be used jointly by different organisations.
According to Europol representatives, new European regulation of the cryptocurrency market will bе very useful in the fight against crime. Joint efforts are needed to stay ahead of criminals.