When 3 Minutes Is a Lifetime: Laundering in the Age of Instant Breaches
In H1 2025 alone, hackers stole over $3 billion in crypto, but the most dangerous evolution isn't scale it's speed. According to a new Global Ledger report, attackers now move funds within seconds of a breach, with laundering often complete before the public even hears about the hack. The fastest observed movement? Four seconds. The fastest full-launder? Just under three minutes. This speed renders traditional AML playbooks obsolete. Compliance teams relying on delayed disclosures or basic alerting systems are often too late before they even start.
A tragic real-world example followed just last week, when Bitcoiner Jimmy Ramirez lost his entire 7.4 BTC life savings to a fake app. Luckily, thanks to rapid community action, notably from ZachXBT, around ~$15K was frozen before it could vanish, showing that speed is also the most powerful weapon in defense. In this space, it’s not the strongest who win, but the fastest.
Garantex’s Shadow Lives On Through A7A5 and Grinex
Last week, we covered how Kyrgyz-registered exchanges like Grinex likely serve as successors to sanctioned Russian platforms such as Garantex. This week, Elliptic’s new investigation puts a spotlight on A7A5, a ruble-backed stablecoin that’s surging in adoption processing over $1 billion daily and backed by interests linked to sanctioned Russian state entities. Originally launched in Kyrgyzstan, A7A5 was rapidly listed on Garantex before its takedown by the US Secret Service, after which funds were rerouted to Grinex. With its ties to Promsvyazbank (Russia’s defense bank) and fugitive Ilan Shor, A7A5 has quickly become a geopolitical workaround, offering Russians access to USDT liquidity outside of freezing risk. In less than two weeks, its market cap tripled to $521 million, raising red flags across the compliance ecosystem.
North Korean Wallets Link Back to SHIB and Fantom Ecosystem
This month, the U.S. Department of Justice seized dozens of crypto wallets linked to North Korean IT workers accused of sanctions evasion. Inca Digital traced funds from the DPRK-linked wallets to addresses associated with the Shiba Inu deployer and possibly the Fantom Foundation, raising concerns over ecosystem exposure. One wallet sent millions through intermediaries, eventually reaching addresses named in the DOJ complaint. These connections though indirect - suggest that major projects may have unknowingly interacted with sanctioned actors.
More weekly top stories:
Super Rare exploited for $720k
Chainalysis Identifies Large CSAM Website Using Cryptocurrency
Coin swap services are becoming a blind spot in crypto compliance
FBI Seizes $1.7M in Bitcoin Linked to Texas Ransomware Attacks
More stories from this week:
Rumors
Whispers around Vancouver suggest Blockchain Intelligence Group is undergoing deep internal cuts- reportedly letting go of entire backend, frontend, investigations, and even sales teams, keeping only team leads. There's also chatter about major leadership shake-ups on the horizon. No official confirmation yet.
See you next week!
