British drug gang reportedly launched meme coins to wash their money

British drug gangs create their own cryptocurrency and mark what experts believe is the country’s first known case to launch digital tokens to wash illegal profits.

While illegal gangs rely primarily on crypto mixers to use Bitcoin or Ethereum to wash their money, this particular gang has created their own meme coins. They hoped it would go viral on social media and quickly surge in value.

Meme Coins and Money Laundering – New Trends for Criminals?

According to MailOnline, experts have identified the incident as the first time a UK street gang has launched a real meme coin as a washing method.

Gangs run at the mid-level and make money by selling fear tor, fraud, drug trafficking, counterfeit goods and smuggled cigarettes. The report does not disclose the name of the coin or the names of the gangsters behind it.

Gary Carroll, a drug crime expert at the Claymore Advisory Group, said criminals have been using cryptocurrency to wash their money for at least 15 years. Now, using meme coins, they found an even easier way to do it.

Illustration of how criminals use meme coins to wash their money. Source: MailOnline

Carol explained that the gang plans to inflate the value of the coin through an online hype campaign. When the price goes up, they throw away the coin and cash out. They aim to disguise their revenues as legal revenue from cryptocurrency ventures rather than drug sales.

“Even if the coins rose in just a small amount, they could still make a lot of money before they sold out. These profits appear to be from crypto entrepreneurs, not drugs,” he emphasized.

Is Launchpad amplifying crypto crime?

This may be the first recorded incident of a gang that turns into a memecoin given the current state of the ecosystem, but it could become a trend. LaunchPad made it very easy to launch meme coins and sil on social media.

This year alone, the market has lost billions of dollars in memecoin scams, pump and dump schemes and ragpur. So, of course, it attracts illegal actors and gangsters and provides a more convenient channel for them to wash their money.

“One or two years later, there will be cases in court, and I’m confident about it. But there are no examples of what’s happening in the UK. I have my own opinion that this will become more common. That’s how they semi-legalize their trade.”

According to a report published by Merkle Science in February 2025, fraud and lagpur involving Meme Coins caused more than $500 million in 2024 to lose more than $500 million worldwide.

Of these incidents, 75% took place via X (formerly Twitter), and 19% took place on YouTube. Psychological manipulation tactics (social engineering) accounted for 44% of all fraud techniques.

Merkle Science also noted that most lag pulls occurred on the Solana blockchain. There, tools like Pump.Fun have made launching and advertising meme coins much easier.