Report: Over $17.5 billion moved out of China via cryptocurrencies in 2020

Unregulated capital outflow from China via cryptocurrencies in 2020 reached $17.5 billion, writes 8btc citing a report from PeckShield.

Compared with 2019, the figure rose by 51%.

According to researchers, capital outflows from the country via cryptocurrencies over the last three years amounted to more than 1.5% of China’s foreign-exchange reserves, totaling $3 trillion.

According to PeckShield, the largest amount of Bitcoin was moved out of China in March 2020 — more than 172,115 BTC. The monthly peak outflow of $2.5 billion was recorded in December, when the price of the first cryptocurrency hit its yearly high.

Volume and value of Bitcoin withdrawn from China by month. Data: PeckShield.

Researchers noted that actual sums of unauthorized capital flight via digital assets exceed those cited in the report. They accounted for movements between several major exchanges, whose users are predominantly Chinese citizens, to major overseas platforms.

Beyond capital flight, the report reviews major fraud cases in the cryptocurrency industry over the past three years. In 2020, losses from such incidents totaled $3.2 billion. This is lower than the previous year, although the number of frauds rose sevenfold.

Last year, Chainalysis researchers concluded that stablecoins—primarily Tether (USDT)—are popular for capital outflows from China.

Subscribe to ForkLog news on Twitter!