Telegram Closes $27B Illegal Marketplace, Haowang Guarantee, Following Elliptic’s Findings

Telegram has closed down the illegal marketplace Haowang Guarantee, which previously operated under the name Huione Guarantee, and was involved in transactions exceeding $27 billion in stablecoins since its establishment in 2021.

This action was taken following analysis provided by a blockchain analytics company on Tuesday.

The shutdown is part of a larger effort to dismantle numerous suspected cryptocurrency criminal channels in China that were using Telegram, in light of a report examining another platform, Xinbi Guarantee.

Alongside Huione, Telegram has also closed Xinbi, which was linked to a total of $35 billion in illicit stablecoin transactions, as noted in a post by the analytics firm on Wednesday.

According to their report, Huione Guarantee has been responsible for facilitating more than $27 billion in transactions since its founding in 2021, establishing it as the largest online marketplace dealing in illegal activities to date.

Xinbi was identified as the second-largest platform, handling approximately $8.4 billion in transactions since it began operating in 2022.

For context, well-known dark web marketplaces like Silk Road and Alphabay were reported to have processed $216 million and $639 million respectively.

Traditionally, these types of marketplaces utilized the anonymous browser Tor but have recently transitioned to Telegram, which boasts a user base of over a billion people.

Huione and Xinbi are classified as “guarantee” marketplaces, a term referring to platforms that do not sell products or services directly but instead act as intermediaries for merchants to connect with customers.