The most powerful players of the cryptocurrency world have joined hands in an unprecedented battle against digital crime, launching a sophisticated new weapon that promises to turn the tide in the fight against blockchain fraud.
Major crypto exchanges Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken have partnered with payment giant PayPal, trading platform Robinhood, and leading security researchers to create the ‘Beacon Network’ — a revolutionary system designed to identify, track, and freeze stolen cryptocurrency before criminals can cash out.
TRM Labs, which designed the platform, announced the network on Wednesday, describing it as creating “an unprecedented level of industry collaboration to block off-ramps for criminal funds”. The timing couldn’t be more critical, with fraudsters having moved at least $47 billion to illicit addresses since 2023. The actual figure could be much higher.
Founding members of the network also include digital asset service company Anchorage Digital, Ripple, prominent security researcher ZachXBT, and the Security Alliance (SEAL). Leading federal law enforcement agencies worldwide will also actively contribute by flagging addresses linked to critical threats. By fostering unprecedented collaboration, TRM Labs aims to enhance transparency, automate detection, and make crypto a secure financial system.
How the network will operate to be effective
The network operates as a real-time alert system. TRM Labs designed the platform to enable verified investigators to mark suspicious wallet addresses, automatically propagate risk labels across linked addresses, and trigger instant alerts when flagged funds reach participating exchanges or issuers. This facilitates rapid response to prevent criminals from off-ramping illicit funds.
“Until now, law enforcement and cryptocurrency platforms have operated in silos, reacting only after illicit funds have disappeared,” said a representative of TRM Labs. “The window for interdiction is often measured in minutes, not days. With Beacon Network, that changes,” he added.
The urgent need for a robust tracking system became clear after the massive $1.5 billion hack on Bybit exchange in February 2025, where North Korea’s notorious Lazarus Group stole funds by exploiting a digital wallet’s security flaw. The hackers scattered the stolen cryptocurrency across over 10,000 transactions in just a month, moving it so quickly that law enforcement was unable to trace or recover most of the funds.
The network has already proven effective in live operations. Law enforcement traced $1.5 million from a global scam through the system, blacklisting addresses to freeze funds when they reached exchanges. Investigators identified another $800,000 in scam deposits at a major exchange, successfully flagging them for immediate freezing.
Only verified users — including law enforcement agencies, vetted partners, and security researchers — can flag addresses as illicit. TRM Labs emphasized that investigators must have “high confidence” in their intelligence before taking action.
The network specifically targets North Korean IT worker teams scamming crypto firms worldwide, while also focusing on disrupting hackers, preventing terrorist financing, and recovering victim funds. Expanding membership remains a key priority as the industry strives to curb digital crime.
