The U.S. Treasury sanctioned an Iranian nationwide for working Nemesis, a darknet drug market, and blacklisted nearly 50 crypto addresses tied to it.
The U.S. Treasury has taken motion towards Behrouz Parsarad, an Iranian nationwide behind Nemesis, a darknet market concerned in fentanyl and different drug trafficking. In a March 4 announcement, the Workplace of Overseas Property Management revealed it had additionally sanctioned 49 cryptocurrency addresses tied to the platform.
Based in 2021, Nemesis turned a giant hub for unlawful drug gross sales, providing fentanyl and different substances. Per OFAC, Nemesis had over 30,000 lively customers and 1,000 distributors and facilitated the sale of practically $30 million value of medicine world wide between 2021 and 2024, together with to the U.S., counting on Bitcoin (BTC) and Monero (XMR) for funds.
“Prior to its takedown by law enforcement, narcotics traffickers and cybercriminals openly traded in illegal drugs and services on Nemesis, which was designed with built-in money laundering features.”
OFAC
In keeping with blockchain analytics agency TRM Labs, there are “clear on-chain links between Nemesis and Chinese drug precursor manufacturers.” Funds from Nemesis distributors reportedly flowed instantly to those suppliers, supporting the manufacturing of artificial opioids.
Nemesis was seized in March 2024 in a joint operation by U.S., German, and Lithuanian authorities. Officers confiscated round $102,000 in cryptocurrency belongings. But, Parsarad allegedly tried to revive the platform by contacting former distributors, prompting the newest enforcement motion to curb illicit commerce.
The crackdown on Nemesis follows comparable enforcement actions towards different darknet markets. TRM Labs famous that darknet marketplaces generated “over $1.7 billion in revenue” in 2024, with Russian-language platforms dominating the area and facilitating greater than 97% of illicit drug gross sales by way of crypto akin to BTC and TRON (TRX).
Whereas Western darknet markets struggled as a result of regulation enforcement stress, Russian platforms thrived below low-risk circumstances. In keeping with TRM Labs, the Russian darknet ecosystem “remained stable throughout 2024, with only four out of approximately 20 marketplaces ceasing operations.”
