The U.S. Department of Justice has dealt a devastating blow to the cryptocurrency "laundry" Huione Group.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced the seizure of a key cloud account belonging to entities of the Huione Group. This infrastructure served as the heart of a vast money laundering network for funds obtained from cryptocurrency scams, hacks, and other forms of cybercrime. This move is not merely a server seizure but the dismantling of an entire ecosystem that has fueled the shadow economy of Southeast Asia for decades.
The seized account supported servers hosting dozens of platforms and Telegram channels. Through these, criminals ordered cryptocurrency "laundering" services, sold stolen databases, and rented infrastructure for fraudulent call centers. In effect, Huione Group was a marketplace for all types of digital crime, from investment pyramids to hacker attacks.
The Largest Hub of Crypto Crime in Southeast Asia
Huione Group had long been on the blacklist of U.S. regulators. As early as 2025, FinCEN (a division of the U.S. Treasury Department) designated the company as a "primary money laundering concern," effectively cutting it off from the U.S. financial system. According to the agency's estimates, from August 2021 to January 2025, at least $4 billion in illicit funds passed through the group's structures. The network's clients included not only petty fraudsters but also North Korean hacker groups stealing billions.
Huione's ecosystem included services such as the payment gateway Huione Pay, the crypto exchange Huione Crypto, and the marketplace Haowang Guarantee (formerly Huione Guarantee). Analysts called the latter the largest illegal online platform for servicing crypto scammers, where one could buy everything from fake documents to ready-made fraud schemes.
Pressure on Fraudsters' Infrastructure Intensifies
The seizure of server infrastructure marks a new phase in the U.S. systemic campaign against transnational fraud networks. The Justice Department emphasized that the goal is not just to imprison individual criminals but to destroy the very platform underpinning the entire crypto scam ecosystem. This is a strategic blow that could severely disrupt the operations of dozens of criminal groups dependent on Huione's infrastructure.
Recall that, according to a Chainalysis report, over $154 billion flowed into illicit crypto wallets in 2025—a 162% increase compared to 2024. This highlights the scale of the problem and why operations like the seizure of Huione's assets are critical for restoring trust in the crypto industry. Without dismantling such "laundries," the fight against crypto crime will remain a game of catch-up.
Expert Opinion: The destruction of Huione Group's infrastructure is undoubtedly an important step, but not a panacea. As soon as one "laundry" closes, two new ones emerge in its place, often using more sophisticated methods such as DeFi mixers and cross-chain bridges. A real victory will only be achieved when regulators move from targeted strikes on infrastructure to systemic regulation of cryptocurrency services on a global level.