As the Trump administration is adding rocket fuel to sanction enforcement, it’s also been legitimizing crypto.
An early preview of Chainalysis’s annual crypto crime report reveals that crypto addresses tied to criminal operations pulled in at least $154 billion during 2025, shattering prior records with a 162% jump from the previous year’s revised $57.2 billion figure. This spike stems largely from sanctioned entities, which saw inflows balloon by 694% year-over-year, signaling a shift where crypto is increasingly relevant at the geopolitical level and used to sidestep financial sanctions and restrictions in the traditional banking system.
The firm’s data traces this upward trajectory from just $11 billion in 2020, and Chainalysis stresses that these numbers represent a conservative baseline, as ongoing investigations often uncover more suspect addresses. For example, the 2024 estimate rose from an initial $40.9 billion to $57.2 billion after more illicit addresses were identified.
Specific nation-state maneuvers identified in the report include those of North Korean hackers, who netted $2 billion through thefts, including the record $1.5 billion exploit against crypto exchange Bybit in February. Russia rolled out its ruble-pegged A7A5 token for sanctions dodging that same month, racking up $93.3 billion in transactions within its debut year. Meanwhile, networks linked to Iran laundered over $2 billion for covert oil exports, arms deals, and other activities.
