Crypto donations to extremist groups surge in Europe

Cryptocurrency donations to extremist groups are experiencing a notable increase in Europe, even as global donations decline.

A report from Chainalysis highlights that while North America remains the leading region for such donations, Europe has captured nearly 50% of on-chain activity linked to extremist groups from 2022 to 2024.

This shift marks a significant change since 2017 when North America accounted for the majority of these donations.

The report indicates that the size and intensity of donations in Europe have also risen, with specific extremist groups seeing substantial year-over-year increases.

For instance, white nationalist groups reported a staggering 270% rise in donation sizes, while other groups like nationalists and conspiracy theorists saw increases of 164% and 70%, respectively.

"Highly polarising events, such as national elections, have created a vortex that draws in more donations," the report states, suggesting that these political moments often lead to spikes in funding for extremist ideologies.

Despite Europe's growth in this area, North America still leads with approximately $20 million in contributions to extremist groups, while Europe follows with $1.9 million.

The report also notes the challenges faced by these groups due to anti-terrorism financing laws, which have prompted them to adapt their fundraising strategies.

Many have turned to the dark web or employed privacy coins like Monero (CRYPTO:XMR) to obscure their transactions.

"Extremist groups have proven adept at changing their fundraising methods," Chainalysis observes, indicating a shift towards more covert operations to evade scrutiny.

The trend of "debanking," where financial institutions close accounts linked to high-risk individuals or organisations, has further motivated extremist groups to seek funding through cryptocurrencies as a means to bypass traditional financial systems.