> Try signing up to Coinbase and funnel $320M worth of ETH via that account. They will 100% lock your account and ask for proof of where it comes from. If it comes from after doing a bunch of tumbling, they will go harder against you to prove where it comes from. Any big exchange will do the same diligence as otherwise they themselves will get into trouble with the law.

So cryptocurrencies are decentralized and free of regulation ... right until they aren't?

To be fair, if I walked into my local bank with $320M in cash I'd face the same problem.

Yeah but you could take cash to the grocery store, gas station, mall, and restaurant.

Cryptocurrencies[1] are trying to be decentralized and free of regulation. But it turns out the world is run by people who like regulation.

[1]: There are so many people in crypto with such diverse views that it doesn't really make sense to say cryptocurrencies are X for any non-tautological value of X. Some people are 'code-is-law' crypto-anarchists, and some people are actually sane and can't wait for the law to get its shit together so they can build their cool decentralised prediction market without accidentally losing the ability to take international flights or something.

> Cryptocurrencies[1] are trying to be decentralized and free of regulation

Without wishing to be seen as unnecessarily snarky, so was Napster.

> it turns out the world is run by people who like regulation

Indeed ... and Napster found that out fairly quickly, too. Although: it was good while it lasted (speaking as an ex-Napster user...)

Since 1 wallet != 1 unique individual; it could be done. The points you bring up are fair, yes. But I'd also imagine if you were able to pull off a $350 million heist, you'd have some sense about obfuscating your withdrawls.

Not to mention, converting your initial crypto tokens into another currency, and then another currency, and eventually making it to Fiat. For example, converting to Monero and back to BTC would be near impossible to trace.

On top of this, there is Paxful which you can utilize for cash payments.

There are many, many ways if you are determined. I don't think anyone would be silly enough to attempt a $350 million withdrawal from Coinbase.

Where can you swap BTC for monero while avoiding KYC? Via wrapped versions of both coins on the eth blockcain or something?

I have heard of people doing very unorthodox things, such as, buying virtual currency via BTC in an online MMORPG and then selling that virtual "gold" for a slight loss to a different vendor who pays out in Monero.

> For example, converting to Monero and back to BTC would be near impossible to trace.

You still have the problem of justifying where you got the initial crypto if anyone audits you. "I just remembered about some crypto I mined in 2010" will not cut it.

With that much at stake, it seems easier to try a public spectacle like the guy who is digging up a landfill to find an old hard drive with a btc wallet.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hard-drive-lost-bitcoin-landfil...

create a phony company, hire yourself , and then pay yourself for consulting work. there are tons of ways of doing it

Localbitcoins won’t.

then break it up into $300k chunks. anyone smart enough to steal so much in such a sophisticated manner is smart enough to launder it