Source: Cointelegraph
Original: “Telegram Shuts Down ‘Largest Dark Web Market Ever’”
A significant Chinese dark web market suspected of facilitating crypto scams and cybercrime has been shut down by the Telegram messaging service, which operated on its platform.
The largest illegal market on the internet, Haowang Guarantee (formerly Huione Guarantee), announced that it would close after Telegram banned thousands of related accounts on May 13.
“Since all our NFTs, channels, and groups were blocked by Telegram on May 13, 2025, Haowang Guarantee will cease operations from now on,” a notice on the market's website stated.
According to a report by Wired, the action involved banning thousands of accounts and usernames that constituted the infrastructure of the crypto crime market and its suppliers.
Telegram spokesperson Remi Vaughn told the media, “The communities previously reported to us by Wired or mentioned in reports by Elliptic have been dismantled,” adding, “Criminal activities like scams or money laundering are prohibited by Telegram's terms of service and will always be removed once discovered.”
According to a report by blockchain security company Elliptic, this Chinese black market facilitated an estimated $27 billion in illegal transactions, primarily using the Tether stablecoin (USDT).
Elliptic researchers also found that the broader Huione Group facilitated over $98 billion in transactions in crypto trading.
The market provided services to crypto scammers, including money laundering, stolen personal information for “pig butchering” scams, telecommunications infrastructure and equipment, deepfake software and IDs, and even physical restraint devices used in scam call centers in Southeast Asia.
Tom Robinson, co-founder of Elliptic, stated that this is a “huge victory” as “the largest dark web market ever has been shut down.”
“This is a game changer for the overall online crime market and a significant win for victims of online scams. This market was a key driver of the global scam epidemic, and I believe this will truly weaken the capabilities of online scammers.”
Earlier in May, the platform was designated by the U.S. Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) as a money laundering operation and would be cut off from the U.S. banking system.
However, Elliptic also discovered another Telegram-based illegal market, Xinbi Guarantee, where the company found thousands of crypto addresses used by merchants on that market.
On May 13, the company stated that it had seen $8.4 billion in transactions so far, but this should be viewed as “the lower limit of the platform's real transaction volume.”
Xinbi is associated with a Colorado company established in 2022, but that company was listed for default in January 2025.
Elliptic stated that markets like this reveal a “Chinese-based underground banking system” that revolves around stablecoins and crypto payments, used for “large-scale” money laundering.
Related: Europol Assists in Dismantling $23 Million "Mafia Crypto Bank"
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