Chainalysis has seen increased usage of Chinese language marketplaces and laundering networks, including Huione Guarantee, it said in its mid-year crypto crime report.
DL News reported in July that the Cambodian online marketplace had become widely used by scam operators in Southeast Asia.
Chainalysis said the platform has processed more than previously reported — in excess of $49 billion in crypto transactions since 2021.
Historically, the Huione Group conglomerate has offered legitimate services, operating as a remittance system for overseas transfers, providing insurance services, and dabbling in the luxury tourism business.
Still, its online platform, Huione Guarantee, is widely used for illicit crypto-based activities, including pig butchering, investment fraud, and money laundering, and has grown into a diverse ecosystem that supports lucrative criminal operations in Southeast Asia, Chainalysis said.
Huione Guarantee operates as a peer-to-peer marketplace that connects buyers and sellers, typically by providing Telegram handles of the contact points to facilitate transactions. It claims to be a neutral party, taking a fee for every transaction, but not verifying the legitimacy of listed goods and services.
There are thousands of Telegram groups advertising or posting communications on Huione Guarantee, each run by different independent merchants or affiliates, many of whom likely have ties to criminal enterprises operating within the region.
DL News has also previously reported that criminal groups are operating facilities in special economic zones in Cambodia and Myanmar, with thousands of people coerced into running crypto fraud on the internet.
