According to Chainalysis data, stablecoins accounted for 84% of the $154 billion in illicit cryptocurrency transaction volume in 2025, surpassing Bitcoin as the primary currency for crime. This shift reflects the broader crypto economy, where stablecoins offer easy cross-border transferability and lower volatility. Criminal enterprises now leverage dollar-pegged assets for a shadow version of the traditional banking system. Nation-states like Russia are also utilizing stablecoins to evade sanctions, with the ruble-backed A7A5 token transacting over $93.3 billion in less than a year, enabling them to bypass the global banking system.

According to Chainalysis data, stablecoins accounted for 84% of the $154 billion in illicit cryptocurrency transaction volume in 2025, surpassing Bitcoin as the primary currency for crime. This shift reflects the broader crypto economy, where stablecoins offer easy cross-border transferability and lower volatility. Criminal enterprises now leverage dollar-pegged assets for a shadow version of the traditional banking system. Nation-states like Russia are also utilizing stablecoins to evade sanctions, with the ruble-backed A7A5 token transacting over $93.3 billion in less than a year, enabling them to bypass the global banking system.