Around 2-6% of World Bank foreign aid got siphoned into crypto wallets
NBER researchers estimate 2-6% of World Bank aid, roughly $1.7-4.4 billion, leaked into crypto wallets.
An NBER working paper tests whether World Bank aid disbursements from 2018 to 2024 coincided with cryptocurrency laundering after the Panama Papers tightened offshore enforcement. Across $238 billion sent to 93 countries, Bitcoin activity, new wallets, exchange records, and IP-linked traffic surged in disbursement months, mainly through anonymous newly created wallets. The authors estimate leakage of 2 to 6 cents per aid dollar, roughly $1.7 to $4.4 billion, without a later funding penalty for the affected sectors.
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