Crypto-related crimes have surged in Q1 of 2019. The crimes include thefts, scams, and fraud. The crimes worth US$ 1.2 billion. It has been 70% of the total crimes that happened in 2018.
US$ 356 million has been stolen from exchanges and infrastructure, alone. Meanwhile, losses from fraud and misappropriated funds reached US$ 851 million. Among the crimes, cryptocurrency users loss US$ 195 million from exit scams.
Among the major exchange thefts, Coinbene, Singapore-based exchange lost an estimated US$ 45 million in a cyberattack in March. Besides, South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Bithumb, also hacked in March. The attacker took around US$ 13 million.
Other than that, two major exits scams happen in Q1 of 2019. First, Coinbin, South Korea’s cryptocurrency exchange lost US$ million. Second, Quadringa CX, Canada’s once largest cryptocurrency exchange failed to provide creditor protection worth US$ 130 million.
Read more: Cryptocurrency Investments, Are They Safe?
Diversification of Crypto Crimes and the Regulations
Researches have found that crypto crime has evolved. External exchange hacks is not the only one dominating crypto crimes. There are increasing cases that involve insiders’ jobs, extortionists, and scammers. They bring a more diverse range of crimes.
Increasing crypto-related crimes has urged governments across the globe to tighten their regulations. Consequently, a wave of new cryptocurrency regulations is coming around the world. That includes anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terror financing (CTF).
Some Asian countries are also struggling to create the regulation, besides European and Canada. For instance, Japan has the Financial Services Agency (FSA). It is a special body to deal with crypto crimes. South Korea also has a similar body, named the Financial Services Commission (FSC). Other than those two, Singapore and China, Asia two hotbed crypto activity has also done the same. Singapore has the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), while China has the Cyberspace Administration of China.
The regulations provided by countries are expected to lower the number of crypto-related crimes happen in the future.
