Russian-language darknet marketplaces moved $1.85 billion through licensed crypto exchanges in the first nine months of 2025, according to a report by analytics firm Global Ledger highlighted by independent anti-corruption expert Ilya Shumanov.
The five largest marketplaces - MEGA, Kraken, BlackSprut, OMG!OMG! and Nova—accounted for the flows, with Kraken responsible for the lion’s share at $1.3 billion. Their payments passed through at least 20 exchanges holding more than 130 international licenses, and volumes on such platforms are growing 20-25% annually. To mask the origin of funds, operators used OTC brokers, P2P transactions, mixers and other tools.
Earlier, for the first time, the European Union included in its latest sanctions package against Russia restrictions on providing crypto transfer services to Russian nationals without EU residency or citizenship. The measures cover not only traditional cryptocurrencies but all crypto assets, including NFTs, stablecoins and other blockchain instruments, and apply across the sector-from centralized exchanges to decentralized platforms and non-custodial wallets.
