Overview
- Chainalysis estimates crypto inflows to suspected trafficking services in 2025 reached hundreds of millions of dollars, stressing the figure is a lower‑bound assessment.
- Tracked activity spans Telegram-based escort services, labor recruiters tied to Southeast Asian scam compounds, prostitution networks, and CSAM vendors, with one CSAM site using over 5,800 addresses to collect more than $530,000 since 2022.
- Payment behavior varies by category, with nearly half of international escort transfers above $10,000, most prostitution and labor‑recruitment payments between $1,000 and $10,000, and CSAM transactions typically under $100.
- Networks increasingly use stablecoins for rapid off‑ramping, privacy coins such as Monero for CSAM laundering, instant exchangers without KYC, and Telegram guarantee services including Tudou and Xinbi.
- Blockchain tracing shows major inflows from the U.S., UK, Brazil, Spain, and Australia into Southeast Asian hubs, while on‑chain transparency exposes chokepoints at exchanges and escrow services that investigators can target.