Are criminals really switching from crypto to gold for money laundering?

UK organized criminals are increasingly using money to hide and wash the proceeds of their activities from, according to reports Daily Mail.

As gold prices remain near record highs at nearly $3,400, the report cites anecdote evidence that gold usage has increased among British criminals.

This refers to one case of an Essex drug dealer who was found to be hiding solid gold coins worth $32.425 in a safe in 2024 from police, and a 2022 case of a Birmingham gang that converted a portion of their $135,100 profit into a gold bar.

Another example was the convictions of several gang members who bought gold grains earlier this year and washed them nearly $359.4 million.

I’ll talk Daily Mail, Legal consultant Gary Carroll explained that precious metals have many advantages over cash as far as criminals are concerned.

“Money allows criminals to cut drug money by £10,000. “Another advantage is that gold tends to value its value.”

Carroll also cites technical and social reasons for reported turns to money, including the transition to a largely cashless society.

However, newspaper quotations for three cases over the past three years are not compelling evidence of growth trends, with reliable data on the use of precious metals by nonexistent offenders.

I’ll talk DecryptionAri Redbord, world director of policy and government affairs at TRM Labs, acknowledges that criminal use of gold could “probably” increase without fully supporting such claims.

“But gold is difficult to quantify because it doesn’t run on the blockchain,” he says. “The very reason criminals use it is because it’s unclear.”

Despite confirming that there is no sufficient evidence or data to conclude that gold is becoming more common, Redboard asserts that TRM Labs can sometimes witness “convergence” in stores worthy of use by criminals.

“(2016) Bitfinex case was one example of a hacker buying a gold bar as part of a laundry of stolen crypto proceeds,” he explained.

Reboard also acknowledges that gold has long been a favorite tool for money laundering due to its portability, value and instability.

“The US government report points to money as a way to avoid sanctions and laundry revenue from corruption and drug trafficking,” he added.

As to whether gold is preferred over crypto from an organized crime perspective, Redboard also accepts that gold leaves the “Digital Panm Trail” like most cryptocurrencies.

“But it is also heavy, difficult and dangerous to transport in large quantities. You can lose it, or you can seize it,” he said.

Crypto is basically the opposite, but usually it is traceable given that it can usually move across boundaries (unless a mixer or privacy coin is involved).

“TRM helps law enforcement agencies around the world track these flows, collect stolen funds and dismantle the network,” explains Redboard. “That’s much more difficult to do with money.”

Thus, even with the recent surge in cryptographic use among criminals, gold appears to continue to play a role in money laundering. Last year’s latest chain analysis crypto crime report reveals that it received up to $51.3 billion in crypto.

Edited by Stacy Elliott.