In a crackdown on online financial crime, messaging app Telegram has shut down two major Chinese-language black markets, Huione Guarantee and Xinbi Guarantee, for violating its terms of service.
These platforms were hotbeds for crypto fraud, money laundering, and online scams, with combined transactions estimated to exceed $35 billion since 2021.
According to blockchain research firm Elliptic, the two platforms eclipsed even notorious dark web marketplaces like Silk Road. The platforms operated openly on Telegram, providing a so-called “guarantee” service that facilitated secure, but illegal, transactions between buyers and sellers of illicit goods and services.
Huione and Xinbi
Huione Guarantee, also known at one point as Haowang Guarantee, was run by the Cambodia-based Huione Group.
This organization has been linked to a range of cybercriminal operations, including “pig butchering” romance scams, identity theft, and fraudulent investment schemes. It reportedly used USDT (Tether) and even launched its own stablecoin, USDH, to make financial tracking more difficult.
U.S. authorities have cracked down on the Huione Group, blocking its access to the U.S. financial system. In early 2025, the National Bank of Cambodia revoked the operating license of Huione Pay, a related financial arm.
Xinbi Guarantee, meanwhile, was formally registered in Colorado, USA, but served a similarly shady purpose. It reportedly facilitated over $8 billion in transactions involving fraud, money laundering, and human trafficking.
Both services acted as middlemen, holding crypto payments in escrow until deals were completed.
Telegram Responds
Telegram confirmed that it had removed both platforms, citing their violation of terms related to scamming and money laundering.
In a brief message to Reuters, the company stated that “criminal activities like scamming or money laundering are forbidden by Telegram’s terms of service and are always removed whenever discovered.”
The takedown is seen as a major disruption to the global cybercrime economy, but experts warn that similar platforms may emerge elsewhere unless law enforcement and tech platforms remain vigilant.
With increasing global attention on crypto regulation and financial transparency, Telegram’s actions mark a bold step toward cleaning up one of the digital world’s biggest vulnerabilities.
