The Crime Scene: Over Half of Bitcoin Transactions are Used for Illegal Purposes

Bitcoin is a revolutionary system able to disrupt the entire industry of finance. It is fully decentralized and, therefore, almost impossible to be controlled or tracked. Despite such potential, there is another side to this medal. By providing its users with security and anonymity, it has become the best friend of… criminals.

Shadow markets and economies are actively using bitcoin and blockchain for their illegal transactions as it makes it much easier to stay covert and anonymous. A research paper published by the University of Sydney, the University of Technology Sydney and the Stockholm School of Economics showed that every fourth uses bitcoin for illegal or criminal activity.

According to the research, about $8 billion is stored on accounts involved in crime. The account holders have made 36 million transactions during the year with a total of $72 billion.

Probably, that is the important reason for many governments treating Bitcoin quite cautiously and trying to impose regulations upon it, to make it centralized or even ban it. To those lacking awareness of the system, it might seem a criminal’s best friend indeed.

However, the community of Bitcoin supporters believes regulations may be against the very idea of a decentralized peer-to-peer system.

What do you think, is it fair to impose government regulations on BTC for the purpose of preventing its use in illegal and criminal activities, such as money laundering and terrorist financing? Let us know in the comments below!