Money Laundering Myths: Banks Outpace Crypto by Billions

Another reminder that crypto is far less risky as a tool for money laundering than fiat currencies flowing through banks.

According to FinCEN, over the past five years U.S. banks processed $312 billion in cartel money from Mexico, funneled through Chinese laundering networks.

And during those very same years, according to Chainalysis, the total volume of illicit transactions across all cryptocurrencies combined was only about $189 billion. In other words — less than what just the Mexican cartels pushed through one channel, using U.S. banks alone.

Keep in mind, Chainalysis is often criticized for overestimating “dirty” crypto traffic, while FinCEN seems more likely to underreport dirty transactions in banks. Otherwise, they’d have to admit that banks are the world’s biggest laundromats — and no regulator wants to shut those down. After all, banks are the one place where money stays under government control.

So next time someone tells you crypto is for money laundering — show them the data from FinCEN and Chainalysis.

If you don’t want your money tangled up in shady banking schemes — use crypto instead of fiat. And swap it at rabbit.io: no registration, no limits, and always the best rates.