Telegram Announces Mass Deletion of Accounts Tied to Chinese Illicit Marketplace

The encrypted messaging platform has just dealt a fatal blow to the largest illicit market ever created on its platform. Haowang Guarantee, a hub of Chinese organized crime that facilitated 27 billion dollars in dubious transactions, has shut down. A spectacular victory that ironically comes as Telegram fiercely defends the privacy of its users against French authorities.

Telegram shuts down the largest Chinese darknet market

On May 13, 2025, Telegram orchestrated a massive cleanup operation by deleting thousands of accounts, groups, and channels associated with Haowang Guarantee (formerly Huione Guarantee).

This darknet marketplace, described by Tom Robinson from Elliptic as “the largest darknet market ever to exist“, served as a hub for various criminal activities: money laundering, crypto scams, identity theft, and even providing equipment for fraudulent call centers.

The scale of the phenomenon is staggering. According to Elliptic , the Huione group as a whole may have facilitated nearly 98 billion dollars in crypto transactions.

These figures reveal the existence of a real Chinese “underground banking system,” where stablecoins like Tether serve as currency to circumvent traditional regulations.

This intervention comes after increasing international pressure, including the designation of the platform as a money laundering operation by the U.S. FinCEN.

Remi Vaughn, Telegram spokesperson, confirms:

We have removed all reported communities. Our terms of use prohibit criminal activities and we always remove them as soon as we discover them.

A paradox between security and freedom that divides

Ironically, this strong action against crime comes as Telegram is engaged in a fierce battle to preserve encryption of its communications.

In April and May 2025, the app sharply criticized French attempts to impose “backdoors” in encrypted messaging, even threatening to leave France rather than compromise users’ security.

This huge divide illustrates Telegram’s fundamental dilemma: how to reconcile the protection of privacy with the need to fight criminal activities? The rapid emergence of Xinbi Guarantee, a new market already handling 8.4 billion dollars, suggests criminals adapt faster than regulators.

The closure of Haowang Guarantee certainly marks a symbolic victory against cybercrime. But it also raises fundamental questions about balancing digital freedom and state control. A debate far from settled, while Telegram continues to navigate between regulatory pressures and its promise of absolute confidentiality.