$158 billion scale is staggering! TRM Labs reveals new crypto crime strategies for 2025

January 29 News, blockchain intelligence company TRM Labs released a new report stating that although illegal activities continue to decline as a proportion of on-chain transactions, the scale of cryptocurrency crime measured in USD still rose to a record high in 2025, reaching $158 billion, a 145% increase from $64.5 billion the previous year.

Data shows that illegal transactions accounted for only 1.2% of the total on-chain transaction volume that year, down from 1.3% in 2024 and well below the 2.4% peak in 2023. Independent forecasts from Chainalysis also indicate that the relevant scale in 2025 is approximately $154 billion, less than 1%. This suggests that while the digital asset ecosystem is expanding, the proportion of illegal funds is being diluted.

To better reflect the risks, TRM introduced a new metric: “illegal funds relative to deployable capital.” The results show that in 2025, criminals only absorbed 2.7% of crypto liquidity, significantly lower than 2.9% in 2024 and 6.0% in 2023. In other words, most of the new inflows into the market are not controlled by illegal networks.

Geopolitical factors remain a core background driving some of the fund flows. The report points out that transactions related to sanctions increased significantly in 2025, mainly involving the Russian system. The annual trading volume of stablecoins pegged to the ruble, A7A5, exceeded $72 billion, with at least $39 billion related to wallets evading sanctions system A7. Stablecoins have also become a primary tool for cross-border transfers. In Venezuela, residents rely heavily on peer-to-peer stablecoin transactions to maintain daily income; in Iran, even though the total volume decreased during conflicts, individual transfer sizes increased, with illegal transactions reaching $580 million.

Hacking and scams are another driving force behind the total increase. Nearly 150 security incidents in 2025 caused losses of $2.87 billion, with one data leak related to North Korea accounting for more than half. Scam losses are approximately $35 billion, with investment schemes and Ponzi models accounting for the highest proportions. TRM also pointed out that generative artificial intelligence is being used to create more deceptive scams and accelerate money laundering, enabling funds to be transferred within days.