Stablecoins top choice for crypto scams: report

Stablecoins last year were used in 70% of crypto scam transactions and more than 80% of crypto payments to sanctioned countries, individuals, and companies, according to a new report.

Details: According to Wired, research from Chainalysis found that total illicit stablecoin volume in 2022 and 2023 added up to $40 billion, far outstripping the overall growth of stablecoins. The research followed a United Nations report earlier this week that found the Tether stablecoin is the preferred asset of money laundering and organized crime in East and Southeast Asia.

ICBA View: ICBA has called on policymakers to ensure new policies directed at the crypto sector fully reflect its risks and to ensure protecting national security and implementing anti-crime measures are primary drivers of crypto policymaking and regulation.

More: Recent Main Street Matters posts from ICBA Senior Vice President of Digital Assets and Innovation Policy Brian Laverdure cover recent crypto collapses, the evolving regulatory environment for digital assets, and the policy debate over treating cryptoassets as securities or commodities.