Crypto fuels drone purchases in Russia and Iran: Report

Key points

• Groups linked to Russia and Iran are increasingly using cryptocurrency to finance the purchase of low-cost military drones and ​components, according to a new report from blockchain analytics ⁠firm Chainalysis.
• U.S. sanctions Iran's largest crypto exchange over IRGC links Commercially available drones have become central to conflict in Ukraine and West Asia, but because low-cost drones are widely available on global e-commerce platforms, it is often challenging for authorities to track who is behind the purchases and what their intent with the products might be.
• While most drone purchases are made using traditional financial rails, procurement networks ⁠are increasingly intersecting with the blockchain, the public digital ledger ⁠on which cryptocurrencies are based, Chainalysis found.
• That ledger allows investigators to map the path of a transaction from its origin to its destination.
• Blockchain researchers at Chainalysis were able to ​trace the flow of crypto from individual wallets connected to drone developers...