Original text: Huione: the company behind the largest ever illicit online marketplace has launched a stablecoin

Source: Elliptic Research; Compiler: 0xjs@金财经

Key points:

Huione Guarantee（ Huiwang Guarantee) is a Telegram-based marketplace that serves fraudsters in Southeast Asia, including those who run so-called "pig-killing" scams.

Merchants on the platform sell technology, personal data and money laundering services. With transactions totaling at least $24 billion, it is the largest illegal online marketplace in history.

Huione Group has recently launched a series of crypto-related products, including USD stablecoins, blockchain, cryptocurrency exchanges and messaging applications.

Elliptic has identified thousands of wallet addresses associated with Huione businesses and illicit vendors operating on the Huione Guarantee, enabling crypto customers to protect themselves from this type of activity.

In July 2024, Elliptic exposed Huione Guarantee as a multi-billion dollar marketplace of online scammers, including those responsible for the so-called pig-killing scam. This Chinese market belongs to Huione Group. Huione Group is a Cambodian conglomerate with ties to the family of Cambodia’s ruler Hun Sen.

Elliptic researchers discovered thousands of vendors on the platform offering money laundering services, stolen personal data, technology and other items needed to conduct large-scale cyber fraud. We even discovered electric shackles used to defraud park workers, many of whom were trafficked into the country. The market appears to be a key enabler of transnational organized crime syndicates defrauding victims around the world.

Huione Guarantee distances itself from Huione Group

After the publication of the Elliptic research report, Huione Guarantee tried to distance itself from Huione Group. For example, the market was recently renamed "Haowang Guarantee". Huione Group's payments business, Huione Pay, also removed a section of its website dedicated to the market and describing Huione Guarantee as a subsidiary. Despite this distance, Huione Guarantee confirmed that Huione Group remains a "strategic partner and shareholder".

Huione Guarantee announced the name change, but clarified that it is still part of the Huione Group. (Translated from the original Chinese post)

Elliptic’s research and the resulting international attention also appear to have influenced the listing of Huione Guarantee. The marketplace has previously said it takes no responsibility for specific items bought and sold on its platform. However, after our study was published, Huione Guarantee stated that certain types of business activity are prohibited, including anything related to "human trafficking," "firearms," ​​and "terrorism."

After the release of Elliptic's research, a notice was added to the Huione Guarantee website announcing new restrictions on the goods and services that can be sold on the market.

The Huione Guarantee market continues to grow

However, the goods and services offered on Huione Guarantee appear to be largely unchanged, and business is booming. Our latest analysis shows that cryptocurrency wallets used by Huione Guarantee and its vendors have received at least $24 billion. Since the release of our research report in July, monthly inflows have increased by 51%.

The value of cryptocurrency received in wallets used by Huione Guarantee and its suppliers. These numbers include new wallets identified as belonging to Huione Guarantee since our last report.

In addition, nearly $6 billion in cryptocurrency has flowed through Telegram bots primarily used for Huione Guarantee online gambling. Preliminary analysis of bets placed through the platform suggests that much of it may constitute money laundering.

These figures show that Huione Guarantee is already the largest online illegal market in history. It dwarfs Hydra, the largest darknet market of all time, which has garnered about $5 billion in cryptocurrency over its six-year run. This reflects the sheer scale of online fraud compared to the online illegal drug trade, which is by far the focus of most darknet markets.

The largest online illicit market of all time based on the value of known cryptocurrency inflows. (The U.S. dollar value of cryptocurrency transactions is calculated based on the prevailing exchange rate at the time of each transaction)goods and services, including proceeds from so-called pig-killing scams.

Recent posts from Huione Guarantee vendors offering money laundering services to launder pig killing scams targeting victims around the world ("chat", "Fine chat", "" refers to a type of fraud including pig-killing plates and their proceeds). (Translated from the original Chinese post)

One of the money laundering services continues to be provided by another Huione Group company, Huione Pay – as mentioned in our previous research. Another money laundering service provider claimed to represent and operate a reported fraud park, Golden Fortune. According to reports, trafficked Vietnamese, Malaysian and Chinese citizens were forced to commit online fraud in the Golden Fortune Park. Fleeing workers were reportedly chased and beaten by security guards, while many female workers were forced into prostitution and pornography.

(Left) A money laundering service provider claims to represent and operate a reported fraud park, providing money laundering services and laundering Proceeds from killing pigs.

(Right) The Golden Fortune campus consists of buildings with barbed wire windows, surrounded by a 10-foot-tall wall and topped with barbed wire.

Huione’s Crypto Infrastructure

In other developments, Huione Group recently launched its own encryption and communications infrastructure, which may reduce reliance on third-party services such as Telegram and the USDT stablecoin.

In September, Huione launched USDH, a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin. Its website states that the advantage of USDH is that it “avoids the freezing and transfer restrictions common with traditional digital currencies” and that “USDH is not restricted by traditional regulatory agencies.”

The USDH stablecoin touts its lack of regulatory oversight and the absence of asset freezes as its main advantages.

Other stablecoins, such as Tether’s USDT, have built-in functionality that allows token issuers to “freeze” accounts if users engage in illegal activity. In fact, one of Huione Pay’s accounts was frozen by Tether in July 2024. This appears to be because this wallet received funds related to North Korea's Lazarus Group theft, rather than because it is related to the Huione Guarantee.

Huione Guarantee currently uses USDT widely as a payment mechanism, and part of the motivation for launching USDH may be to reduce the risk of similar asset freezes.risk. The marketplace recently started promoting stablecoins to its users.

USDH stablecoin is promoted by Huione Guarantee.

So far, USDH has been issued on the Ethereum, BSC and Tron blockchains, as well as Huione’s own recently launched blockchain, the Huione Chain (also known as the Xone Chain). The project seeks to raise funds through an initial coin offering (ICO), involving the sale of “HC”, the blockchain’s native token.

In addition to Huione Chain, Huione Group also launched its own crypto wallet software and decentralized exchange (DEX) that allows USDH to be exchanged for other crypto assets.

ChatMe messaging app

Huione Guarantee currently operates through a network of channels on Telegram. Telegram has faced growing pressure to regulate its platform and prevent its use for illegal purposes, culminating in the arrest of its founder Pavel Durov.

Huione’s “ChatMe” messaging application is launched on Apple AppStore

In August, Huione Group launched ChatMe, a messaging app that replicates many of Telegram’s features. ChatMe, available for download in both the Apple and Google app stores, allows the creation of group chats and bots, the type of bots Huione Guarantee uses to operate its marketplace. ChatMe also integrates with Huione Chain for payments and other features.

Huione Crypto Exchange

Huione Crypto also launched in September, allowing users to trade between the USDH stablecoin and crypto-assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, TRX, SOL and Dogecoin. Cambodia-based Huione Pay has been offering crypto asset services for some time, but Huione Crypto is Huione Group’s first dedicated cryptocurrency exchange. Huione Crypto is headquartered in Poland and can serve users throughout the EU, with Chinese support.

Huione Guarantee continues to grow, and our research shows it has become a major driver of online fraud operations in Southeast Asia.