- Authorities warn that decentralised digital assets, unregistered exchanges, anonymous wallets, and P2P channels have created a modern form of crypto-enabled hawala
- As India strengthens regulations and cyber monitoring, transnational cooperation will be critical to curb this rapidly evolving financial threat
Investigations by India’s Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) have uncovered an intricate web of transnational financial operations using cryptocurrency to launder cybercrime proceeds across Asia. After analysing 144 cases, officials found recurring links between India, Pakistan, China, Dubai, Cambodia, and Myanmar, revealing an organised ecosystem of offshore scam syndicates.
One case involving a Ghaziabad-based hawala operator exemplifies the pattern: money siphoned through mule bank accounts was converted into cryptocurrency, sent to a Dubai-based unhosted wallet, passed through Cambodia’s blacklisted Huione Pay, and finally accessed by Chinese networks running investment fraud, loan app scams, and online gambling.
- Officials disclosed shocking linkages to extremist groups
- Proceeds from a ₹500-crore PowerBank loan app scam were allegedly routed to fund entities associated with Al Qaeda and Hamas, using Chinese crypto exchanges
India’s cybercrime losses now exceed ₹1,000 crore per month, with more than 20,000 Indians trapped in scam compounds in Southeast Asia. The crackdown in those regions has driven criminal operators increasingly toward Dubai, where ATM withdrawals in dirhams are used to buy crypto under the radar.
