Video Interview: Chainalysis’ Gurvais Grigg on Illicit Crypto Activity

Although illicit activity involving cryptocurrency has increased significantly over the last year, the overall percentage of illicit activity is actually at an all-time low, according to Gurvais Grigg, global public sector chief technology officer for Chainalysis, a blockchain data platform company.

“As our database and our information grows larger, we’re able to associate more and more transactions with illicit activity,” Grigg said during a video interview with Executive Mosaic. “So the amount of activity increased, but when you look at it as a percentage of overall market cap, it actually dropped, and it dropped dramatically.”

Grigg noted that the total amount of illicit activity associated with crypto only represented .15 percent of all illicit transactions – a figure that’s down from .62 percent the year before. This downward trend, he noted, is a positive for both consumers and for the growing digital asset market.

Chainalysis recently published its 2022 Crypto Crime Report, which gives a comprehensive overview of the notable trends, statistics and changes across the cryptocurrency and blockchain landscape. In his interview, Grigg spoke on these trends and also shared his insights on the role digital assets are playing in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine today.