Crypto Scammers and Wallet Graphs: How the Central Bank Tracks Shadow Chains

Crypto scammers stole more than 1 billion rubles from Russians in the first half of 2026, and the Bank of Russia is responding with more sophisticated analytics: the regulator now looks not only at individual cryptocurrency wallets, but at entire networks of connected addresses through which suspicious flows pass.

“Trades Closed From +40% Profit”

“+1,300$/Month in Profit”

“Stable 500$–600$ Withdrawals”

Why the Central Bank Analyzes Transaction Graphs, Not Just Wallets

In the first half of 2026, the Bank of Russia added data on 2,600 crypto wallets linked to illegal activity to its digital compliance system. This is 44% more than the previous year. The growth is explained by the regulator’s gradual shift from searching for individual addresses to analyzing transaction graphs: the connections between wallets, the direction of fund flows, and recurring withdrawal schemes.

The blockchain makes such chains visible. Any transfer leaves a digital trace: you can see the fact of the transaction, the amount, the time, the route, and the addresses involved in the movement of funds. Based on these signs, analysts identify stable behavior patterns and find wallets that are formally different but actually connected by a single infrastructure.