Chainalysis: Chinese-language money laundering networks handled $16.1B in 2025
Chainalysis’s 2026 Crypto Crime Report (released Jan. 27) found that Chinese-language money laundering networks (CMLNs), largely run via Telegram, processed $16.1 billion in 2025 and now account for about 20% of known cryptocurrency money laundering activity. The report says CMLNs operated through more than 1,799 active wallets in 2025—about $44 million per day—and that inflows to these networks have grown far faster since 2020 than flows to centralized exchanges, DeFi, or intra-illicit on‑chain activity (7,325x, 1,810x and 2,190x faster, respectively).
Chainalysis identified six discrete service types inside the ecosystem: running point brokers, money mule motorcades, informal OTC services, Black U services, gambling services, and money movement services. Black U services, which sell “tainted” crypto at discounts, reached $1 billion in cumulative inflows in just 236 days, and very large transactions in Q4 2025 cleared in an average of 1.6 minutes.
On‑chain patterns mirror traditional placement, layering and integration. Chainalysis found aggressive structuring by Black U services—small transactions under $100 rose 467% from inflow to outflow, medium transactions ($100–$1,000) rose 180%, and very large transfers (over $10,000) reached 51% more destination wallets than source wallets.
Gambling vendors, brokers and OTC services act as the ecosystem’s main aggregators.
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