As the United States and other nations consider the possibility of establishing national cryptocurrency reserves, new findings from Chainalysis indicate that governments may already have access to tens of billions of dollars in recoverable onchain assets — a situation that could influence those reserve discussions.
In a report released on Thursday, Chainalysis assessed that cryptocurrency balances associated with illegal activities surpass $75 billion. This figure comprises approximately $15 billion directly held by illicit actors and over $60 billion in wallets connected to those entities.
The blockchain analytics firm reported that darknet market operators and vendors possess over $40 billion in crypto assets on the blockchain.
About 75% of the total illicit value is in Bitcoin (BTC), although stablecoins are increasingly involved in such activities.
Chainalysis connected its findings to the US Trump administration’s establishment of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile. These initiatives are designed to increase federal crypto assets through budget-neutral strategies, possibly including asset seizures.
“[T]he cryptocurrency ecosystem offers law enforcement an unprecedented opportunity: billions of dollars in illicit funds reside on public blockchains and are theoretically recoverable if authorities can coordinate efforts,” the report stated.
Chainalysis co-founder and CEO Jonathan Levin shared with Bloomberg that these figures elevate “asset forfeiture potential to a markedly different scale,” noting, “It alters how nations approach this.”
In other news, Canadian officials recently confiscated approximately $40 million in digital assets from TradeOgre, a cryptocurrency exchange accused of operating without proper registration and aiding money laundering. This action faced significant backlash from the crypto community, with critics claiming it exceeded regulatory limits.
Related: Bybit hacker launders 100% of stolen $1.4B crypto in 10 days
Blockchain transparency distorts views on crypto crime
While cryptocurrency crime has risen in recent years, including notable hacks targeting major exchanges and service providers, its total scale remains relatively minor.
According to Chainalysis’s 2025 Crypto Crime Report, illegal transactions made up only 0.14% of all blockchain activities in 2024, a trend that continues to decline from prior years.
In comparison, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that 2%-5% of global GDP is laundered via traditional financial systems.
Experts suggest that one reason crypto crime attracts disproportionate attention is the transparency inherent in blockchain networks, where every transaction can be traced publicly. This transparency makes illegal actions easier to identify, leading to more reports compared to crimes involving cash or traditional banking systems.
As a newer technology, the cryptocurrency ecosystem has also been subject to rigorous regulatory and enforcement scrutiny, intensifying perceptions of widespread wrongdoing.
Related: Blockchain security must localize to stop Asia’s crypto crime wave
