Case studies

Cryptocurrency Terrorism Financing

An FRA expert provided critical support to the FBI's Counterterrorism Division, in connection with a multi-agency task force uncovering cryptocurrency terrorist financing. Their efforts led to the most significant US seizure of cryptocurrency to date.

Challenge

An FRA Senior Associate, while a contractor intelligence analyst working in the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, was part of a multi-agency task force responsible for identifying and tracing cryptocurrency used by Foreign Terrorist Organizations. The money laundering methodologies employed by these networks featured a variety of money movement and funding obfuscation techniques across hawala networks, banks, online alternative payment methods, money service businesses, and blockchain infrastructure.

Action

The FRA Senior Associate leveraged blockchain analytics platforms to trace the flow of cryptocurrency from known terror cells to institutions facilitating the exchange between crypto and fiat currency. Synthesizing this data with off-chain intelligence, the Senior Associate aided the multi-agency team in mapping out a hawala terror funding network through the issuance of legal process, open-source research, and complex financial document analysis.

Result

As a result of the Senior Associate’s contributions to the investigation, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) conducted the largest seizure of cryptocurrency (300 crypto addresses and “millions of dollars”) funding terrorism in United States history, and closure of multiple terrorism-affiliated website domains. 

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