According to the US regulator, Mexican drug traffickers use cryptocurrencies to buy fentanyl precursor chemicals. Tablet presses, molds and other equipment are also being purchased from Chinese companies.
In addition to anonymous and conventional cryptocurrencies, death merchants also use regulated stablecoins such as USDT. To purchase equipment, they send digital assets to people associated with Chinese suppliers or other intermediaries. Front companies are also used.
However, FinCEN experts emphasize that drug cartels use any other financial instruments: some funds go through banks, some through payment companies and online systems. Most of the payments are denominated in American dollars.
Last year, FinCEN warned that digital assets are increasingly being used by terrorists.