Elliptic, a British forensic firm specializing in blockchain analysis, reports that Huione Guarantee, a Cambodian marketplace partly associated with the country’s ruling family, has become a hub for crypto scammers and merchants offering money laundering services.
According to a report released on Wednesday by the London-based firm, Huione Guarantee, a marketplace based in Cambodia, operates through a network of thousands of Telegram channels and serves as an escrow provider for USDT transfers. It has become a hotspot for bad actors laundering proceeds from fraudulent activities. Beyond facilitating pig butchering, Huione’s merchants also sell software for creating scam crypto investment websites, as noted by Elliptic.
Elliptic’s analysis reveals that crypto wallets associated with Huione Guarantee and its merchants have received “over $11 billion since 2021.” However, Elliptic suggests this figure could be higher due to turnover among merchants and incomplete wallet information.
While not all transactions can be definitively linked to fraud, Elliptic emphasizes that products and services advertised on the platform strongly indicate illicit activity.
“Manual analysis of thousands of messages on Huione Guarantee confirms its predominant role as an illicit marketplace,” Elliptic stated.
Despite resembling a darknet marketplace, Huione Guarantee is part of Huione Group, a Cambodian conglomerate that also operates Huione Pay, a payments and foreign exchange business. Hun To, a director at Huione Pay and cousin of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, has reportedly faced allegations of heroin trafficking and money laundering by Australian authorities. Elliptic’s findings suggest Huione Group not only facilitates cyber scams through Huione Guarantee but also engages in laundering proceeds from these activities through its subsidiaries.
