Mastercard Debuts Blockchain Surveillance Tool for Banks and Crypto-Centric Card Issuers

On Tuesday, the multinational financial services corporation Mastercard revealed that it is launching a new crypto monitoring product called Crypto Secure. The Crypto Secure software aims to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms in order to help banks and crypto-centric debit card issuers identify fraudulent crypto transactions. Mastercard, Ciphertrace Introduce New Crypto Monitoring Product Called Crypto … Read more

Elliptic Identifies ‘Several Hundred Thousand Crypto Addresses’ Tied to Russia-Based Sanctioned Actors

As the Russia-Ukraine conflict continues, blockchain surveillance companies have discussed and implemented ways to combat sanctioned countries from using digital assets. Last week, Chainalysis revealed screening tools for crypto firms that aim to comply with international sanctions. On Monday, the CEO of Elliptic published a blog post describing the company’s work to combat sanction evasion. … Read more

Chainalysis Study Shows ‘Criminal Whales’ Hold $25B in Digital Assets, Entities Represent 3.7% of All Crypto Whales

According to research published by Chainalysis, criminal entities hold more than $25 billion in cryptocurrencies. The blockchain intelligence firm’s study shows that there was a significant increase in crypto balances held by criminals in 2021 as the metric jumped by 266% since the year before. Chainalysis Studies Crypto Whales Holding Balances Tied to Illicit Addresses … Read more

Journalist Claims She Identified the 2016 DAO Hacker, Evidence Shows Investigators ‘De-Mixed’ Wasabi Transactions

An article published by journalist Laura Shin, and research stemming from the blockchain surveillance firm Chainalysis, claims to identify the alleged identity of The DAO hacker who drained millions of dollars worth of ethereum from the decentralized autonomous organization on June 17, 2016. Shin’s and Chainalysis’s findings accuse the former Tenx CEO, Toby Hoenisch, of … Read more

Chainalysis to Offer Lightning Network Monitoring Service to VASPs in 2022

On December 10, the blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis revealed that the company has added support for Bitcoin’s second-layer protocol the Lightning Network (LN). According to Chainalysis, firms like exchanges and virtual asset service providers (VASPs) can leverage the company’s Know-Your-Transaction (KYT) real-time transaction monitoring software in order to access compliant bitcoin deposits and withdrawals from … Read more

Payments Giant Mastercard Acquires Blockchain Intelligence Firm Ciphertrace

Mastercard, the American multinational financial services corporation, announced the company is dipping further into the digital asset ecosystem by acquiring the blockchain intelligence firm Ciphertrace. The partnership announcement says the firm will help bolster Ciphertrace’s and Mastercard’s cyber security solutions. Mastercard Purchased Ciphertrace for Undisclosed Sum On Thursday, the financial payments giant Mastercard (NYSE: MA) … Read more

Blockchain Surveillance Firm Chainalysis Raises $100 Million, Company’s Valuation Now $4.2 Billion

The blockchain intelligence and surveillance firm Chainalysis announced the company has raised $100 million in Series E funding from investors such as Coatue, Benchmark, Accel, Addition, Dragoneer, Sequoia Heritage, and SVB Capital. The financing brings the company’s valuation to $4.2 billion and it aims to expand its resources and deepen data to cover more cryptocurrencies … Read more

DOJ Seeks Trial Attorney With Extensive Blockchain and Crypto Knowledge

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is seeking a trial attorney to help with the federal executive agency’s Digital Currency Initiative. The DOJ posted a job listing on the justice.gov web portal and the hired individual is expected to serve as an “expert on digital currency and blockchain technologies for the criminal division.” DOJ’s Money … Read more

Privacy-Centric Coins See Fresh Gains, Monero Captures All-Time Price High

On May 7, the privacy-centric crypto asset monero captured an all-time high at $515 per unit, as demand for confidential transactions has increased in recent times. Monero has gained more than 190% during the last three months, while a number of other privacy coins like zcash, verge, horizen, and grin have seen significant gains as … Read more

Ciphertrace Allegedly Builds Monero-Tracing Tools, XMR Proponents Disagree

The blockchain surveillance firm Ciphertrace claims to have created the “world’s first” monero tracing tools for law enforcement. According to the company announcement, Ciphertrace developed forensic tools for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in order to track illicit monero transactions. Despite the firm’s claims, there is zero evidence provided that prove the company … Read more