Privacy-centric cryptocurrency Monero

It surpasses Litecoin and Toncoin and ranks among the top 25 digital assets by market value.

According to data source Coingecko, so-called flipping has a market capitalization of XMR of $7.5 billion, more than LTC’s $7.35 billion.

Monero (XMR) is a decentralized, peer-to-peer cryptocurrency with technology that increases privacy to obscure transaction details. This makes traditional financial tracking and intercepting methods largely obsolete. This explains why criminals love cryptocurrency.

Earlier this year, a media outlet linked to the Islamic State of Pakistan (ISIS) reportedly released a poster calling for the contribution of “Jihad with Wealth” and called for a donation at Monero.

Still, the controversial coin price has risen by more than 100% this year to over $400, reaching the level seen in early 2021, Coindesk Data shows. The rally appears to have been led by impending privacy upgrades and optimism about rumours of relisting in major exchanges, including US-listed Coinbase.

Meanwhile, Litecoin (LTC), considered the silver of Bitcoin, has fallen 6% this year, below $100. Toncoin, deeply integrated into the economy of social messaging app Telegram, fell 25% this year.

A suspected theft of 3,520 Bitcoin valued at approximately $330.7 million has triggered a sharp rally in Monero (XMR), after the stolen funds were laundered through multiple instant exchanges.

The incident, flagged by blockchain investigator ZachXBT, began when the BTC was transferred from a potential victim’s wallet to a known suspicious address.

The launderers swiftly moved the funds across more than six exchanges, converting large amounts of Bitcoin into Monero, a privacy-centric cryptocurrency renowned for its untraceable transactions.

Monero Soars 50% to Multi-Year High

The sudden surge in demand caused XMR’s price to spike by 50%, reaching highs of $329, a level unseen in years.

As of now, the token is trading at $267.03, up by 16.3% over the past day, according to data from CoinGekco.

Data from Coinglass revealed that over $1 million in short positions were liquidated during the rally, further fueling upward pressure.

Monero’s price breakout also coincided with growing anticipation around its upcoming EP159 and EP160 upgrades.

These proposals aim to make Monero more “compliance-friendly” by enabling users to prove transaction validity without revealing private details — a move analysts believe could pave the way for Monero’s relisting on major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase under Europe’s new MiCA regulations.

Notably, other privacy-focused tokens, including Zcash (ZEC), Dash (DASH), and Decred (DCR), also posted notable gains.

Finnish Authorities Trace Monero in High-Profile Hack

Despite the appeal of privacy tokens like Monero for offering enhanced anonymity, the National Bureau of Investigation in Finland reportedly made significant progress in tracing XMR transactions as part of an investigation into the criminal trial of Julius Aleksanteri Kivimäki.

Kivimäki stands accused of hacking a private mental health firm’s database and demanding ransom payments in cryptocurrencies.

Last year, prosecutors revealed a crypto trail that led to Kivimäki’s bank account.

The alleged hacker had supposedly demanded 40 Bitcoin, equivalent to approximately 450,000 euros at the time, in exchange for not exposing records belonging to over 33,000 patients from psychotherapy service provider Vastaamo.

When the ransom went unpaid, Kivimäki purportedly targeted individual patients.

Finnish police claim that the hacker received payments in Bitcoin, sent the funds to a non-compliant Know Your Customer (KYC) exchange, converted them into Monero, and then transferred them to a dedicated Monero wallet.

Subsequently, the funds were reportedly sent to Binance, where they were exchanged for Bitcoin once again before being moved to various other wallets.

The local authorities have maintained confidentiality and have not disclosed further details regarding their on-chain analysis.

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