Chainalysis and Europol to investigate criminals via blockchain tools

Chainalysis’ blockchain analytics technology enables law enforcement agencies to track such ransom payments through the Bitcoin blockchain, and eventually to identify the culprits.

Law enforcement agencies are not the only ones interested in blockchain analytics. Chainalysis recently contracted with Barclays to provide compliance tools that will allow the London-based bank to work with businesses that operate on the Bitcoin blockchain.

Many banks are prevented from providing services to businesses that accept Bitcoin because the pseudo-anonymous nature of the virtual currency keeps banks from complying with anti-money laundering regulations. Chainalysis gathers and analyses data from the blockchain so that banks can meet their regulatory reporting requirements to ensure that they are not facilitating money laundering or other criminal activities.

How the advent of Chainalysis and other blockchain analytics companies will affect the perception of Bitcoin among advocates and users of the virtual currency remains to be seen. If Bitcoin transactions can be tracked and traced as easily as bank transfers, the virtual currency risks losing its appeal with both the criminal underworld and its privacy-minded pioneers.