Centralized Crypto Exchanges Used To Buy $32 Mn In Fentanyl Precursors
Elliptic’s research has found US-sanctioned Russian and Australian exchanges as intermediaries in the global fentanyl supply chain. The company’s investigation traces vendors’ digital asset wallets and found at least 100 sellers in China willing to sell fentanyl-precursor chemicals, pill presses, or dies. The Chinese market is the world’s primary exporter of finished fentanyl products, and it exports the majority of fentanyl and its precursors.
Elliptic discovered that Chinese suppliers were able to ship fentanyl precursors internationally, often using packaging resembling dog food or car wash detergent. These suppliers often use legitimate carriers with limited time to verify packaging. Elliptic traced transactions involving these wallets, tallying tens of millions of dollars made from crypto-denominated sales, mostly in bitcoin and tether. Most payments came from centralized exchanges, with Russian exchange Garantex and an unnamed Australian exchange as major intermediaries. Elliptic also identified addresses on the Ethereum and Tron blockchains, bitcoin addresses, and Monero, which are privacy-supporting.
(With inputs from Shikha Singh)
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