A growing number of drug organizations in Mexico and Colombia are using Bitcoin to wash black money, the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) under the United Nations said on the 10th (local time).
In its annual report published on the same day, INCB pointed out that Mexican drug giants, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), and the Sinaloa Cartel, are using Bitcoin a lot.
In Mexico, financial transactions worth more than $7,500 at a time attract the attention of the authorities, so criminals mainly split drug transaction profits into small amounts and distribute them to various accounts.
Through these accounts, small amounts of Bitcoin are repeatedly bought on the Internet, making it impossible to identify the source of funds, and Bitcoin is also used as a means of payment to partners around the world, INCB explained.
Citing the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), INCB said Mexican and Colombian criminal organizations are increasing their use of virtual currency due to anonymity and speed of transactions.
The report said that the total amount of money laundering in Mexican drug cartels amounts to $25 billion a year, adding that it is one of the richest and most powerful criminal organizations in the world.
INCB also expressed that cyber space and cryptocurrency have become new horizons for criminal organizations, saying sales of synthetic drugs such as fentanyl are increasing through e-commerce sites and the Dark Web.
