A recent report by the blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis has revealed that Huione Guarantee, an online marketplace linked to the ruling family of Cambodia, has processed more than $49 billion in cryptocurrency transactions since 2021. The report highlights Huione Guarantee’s involvement in various cyber scam operations, particularly its role as a significant player in the so-called pig-butchering economy. This platform has been identified as a “guarantor or escrow provider” for transactions, allowing it to facilitate a wide range of illicit activities without verifying the legitimacy of the goods advertised.
The Chainalysis report elaborates on the scale of Huione Guarantee’s operations, which connects buyers and sellers primarily through Telegram handles. While the platform claims to act as a neutral party, researchers found that many of the thousands of Telegram groups advertising on Huione Guarantee likely have connections to criminal enterprises within the region. The report indicates that Huione Guarantee has been particularly active on the Ethereum and TRON blockchains, with inflows exceeding $49 billion and $1.9 billion, respectively, revealing the extensive financial networks that have developed around the marketplace.
Moreover, Chainalysis discovered numerous examples of transactions between Huione Pay and entities considered illicit or risky. This includes ties to scams, stolen funds, and even connections to sanctioned Russian exchanges. Researchers noted that Huione Guarantee facilitates activity not only among individual scammers but also supports criminal networks behind these operations, thereby enabling a broad spectrum of illicit activities across Southeast Asia. Some advertisements on the platform even offer access to tools that could assist in executing sophisticated scams such as Ponzi schemes.
The Huione Group, which operates Huione Guarantee, is reported to have legitimate business dealings but has also been implicated in the pig-butchering economy through its subsidiaries. Notably, one of the directors of Huione Pay, Hun To, is a cousin of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and has a controversial history linked to drug trafficking and organized crime. This connection raises concerns about the intertwining of legitimate business operations with criminal enterprises in the region, highlighting the challenges authorities face in regulating and monitoring such expansive and complex networks.
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