Merkle Science
Preventing Crypto Crime

Frauds and criminal activities tend to go where the action is. It comes as a no surprise that cryptocurrencies are in the limelight for the wrong reasons, with bitcoin involved in criminal activities to the tune of more than 1 billion last year. In fact, cryptocurrency exchanges lose an average of $5 million a year arising because of bank closures that stem from AML compliance concerns, and all these are just the tip of the iceberg. To take hold of the situation, a predictive capability and a machine learning architecture that automatically collects and analyses data from relevant sources is imperative to identify suspicious behaviors. Merkle Science, a Singapore-based company, provides a blockchain transaction monitoring and intelligence solution dedicated to crypto-asset service providers, financial institutions, and government agencies to detect, investigate and prevent money laundering, terrorist financing, and other criminal activities.

Merkel Science’s blockchain transaction monitoring platform provides near-real-time analysis that detects and flags suspicious cryptocurrency transactions. In order to manage risk exposure to criminal activity, Merkel Science leverages proprietary risk algorithms for transaction thresholds, laundering patterns and layering heuristics, and an extensive database of cryptocurrency addresses. Merkle Science’s dedicated team of crypto crime investigators provides on-demand intelligence reports to support investigations into criminal and suspicious activity involving cryptocurrencies.

The company makes use of its in-house forensic tools, and analysts who combine on-chain and off-chain data to offer a comprehensive analysis of a business based on its cryptocurrency activities. Similarly, companies can assess the possibility of storing their crypto-assets through the KYBB (Know Your Blockchain Business) Report. Customers get additional insights from Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) Reports and data from on-demand intelligence analysts for complicated investigations.

The core competencies of Merkle Science get reflected through its offerings—an API-based real-time transaction monitoring, automatically generated reports, support for multiple crypto assets, customizable risk parameters, and enhanced due diligence reports.

Upholding the philosophy of collaboration, Merkle Science has established its presence in the forefront of Singapore’s blockchain monitoring solutions. Tokyocrypto, Indonesia’s largest and only licensed crypto-asset exchange, selected Merkle Science to detect, investigate, and prevent the illegal use of crypto assets. The partnership enabled Tokyocrypto to bolster its existing Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF) processes and provide accurate data and reports to regulators and law enforcement agencies. The goal of Merkle Science is not only to help exchanges manage their compliance risks but also to educate regulators and law enforcement on crypto crime.

In the recent light of COVID-19, cybercriminals would have chalked out plans to take advantage of users’ unpreparedness. While phishing emails, malicious applications, hijacking WiFi routers, and scams continue, Merkle Science holds faith in its solutions to take control of any unexpected circumstances. Merkle Science provides a blockchain transaction monitoring tool that helps crypto asset business to identify COVID-19 crypto crime linked wallet addresses so that they don’t risk facilitating money laundering activities. The company also offers Enhanced Due Diligence reports, which are deep-dive investigations carried out into a specific crypto crime incident, such as again a COVID-19 ransomware attack.

In the pre-COVID-19 scenario, bitcoin use was growing faster from its inception, in contrast to both personal computer and internet adoption. The COVID-19 pandemic is likely to accelerate the transition to a more efficient and transparent blockchain-powered financial infrastructure. With its robust monitoring solutions, Merkle Science has all ends secured with its capabilities to detect, investigate, and prevent crypto crime.