BNYMellon Takes on Chainalysis to Track Crypto Transactions

Key Insights:

• Bank of New York Mellon partners with Chainalysis to monitor crypto transactions
• Chainalysis products can detect high-risk crypto activity
• Russia was at the forefront of illicit crypto activity in 2021

Regulatory and government scrutiny of the crypto market, NFTs, and the Metaverse has been hot news at the turn of the year.

Several exchanges have had to face off with regulators. While the ongoing saga of security or not security continues, there have also been concerns over the marked increase in illicit activity.

The situation has even drawn the attention of the Biden administration. Last week, the White House announced that it would be issuing an executive order on cryptos as early as this week.

With heightened regulatory and government scrutiny, long-established financial institutions have a lot to lose should they fall on the wrong side of regulatory authorities.

BNYMellon Partners with Chainalysis to Monitor Crypto Transactions

Chainalysis announced a new partnership with Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon) to monitor crypto transactions on Wednesday. The bank reportedly plans to incorporate Chainalysis compliance software into its crypto risk management infrastructure.

The Chainalysis risk management software suite has key features suitable to BNY Mellon’s tracking requirements. These include Chainalysis KYT (Know Your Transaction), Kryptos, and Reactor. Chainalysis KYT monitors all crypto-asset transactions in real-time and can detect high-risk activity.

Supporting KYT is Reactor, which enables deeper investigation into suspicious activity, and Chainalysis Krypto. Chainalysis Krypto provides analysis on transaction volumes, counterparties, and benchmarking. Using the Chainalysis suite of products, BNYMellon will be well-placed to develop the required risk management framework to meet regulatory expectations.

BNY Mellon is one of the largest custodian banks, with $46.7tn assets under custody and administration, as of December 2021. The bank has $2.4tn in assets under management and provides services across 35 countries.

In February 2021, BNY Mellon formed “a new digital assets unit to deliver the industry’s first multi-asset digital platform.” The move was to help clients address needs concerning digital assets, including cryptos.

North Korea and Russia Increase the Need for Vigilance

Despite increased regulatory scrutiny, cybercriminals have continued to amass digital assets, including Bitcoin (BTC). As the U.S and other nations impose sanctions on Russia, governments are likely to take a closer look at illicit activity across the crypto market.

There were a reported $602m in ransomware payments in 2021. Based on 2020 revisions, the final figure is likely to hit more than $1bn. In 2020, ransomware payments stood at $692m. Alongside North Korea, Russia was particularly active in illicit activity. Based on estimates, Russian-based Conti reportedly hauled in $180m from ransomware victims last year. DarkSide, another Russian-based cybercrime syndicate, gained close to $100m.

In addition to ransomware, illegal activity across DeFi protocols also surged in 2021. In 2021, illicit transfers to DeFi protocols reportedly increased 1,964% to $900m.

As nations hit Russia with punitive sanctions, Chainalysis and its suite of products could aid governments in cutting off the supply of funds to Russia.