Sanctions remain the top illicit crypto category at 33% of illicit volume, as overall blockchain transactions surged to $10.6 trillion in 2024.

Crypto transactions jumped 56% in 2024 to $10.6 trillion, while illicit activity fell 24% to $45 billion, now just 0.4% of total volume, down from 0.9% in 2023, TRM Labs reports.

In a Feb. 18 blog post, the blockchain forensic firm said sanctions-linked transactions made up the largest share of illicit crypto activity, accounting for 33% of the total. Blocklisted funds followed at 29%, with scams and fraud at 24%.

The analysts expect the illicit volume figures to rise over time as more data is analyzed. In early 2024, the firm estimated illicit transactions for 2023 at…