Bitcoin first became popular as a means of payment for illegal goods on the dark web marketplace Silk Road. But only recently, when cryptocurrencies returned to the mainstream media, the currently most active marketplace in the dark network dropped Bitcoin in favor of Monero.
Here’s why the use of Bitcoin as a web dark currency is on the decline, and why Monero could see a surge in adoption as the only cryptocurrency that government cannot penetrate.
Without the dark web, the bitcoin we know today couldn’t be
Bitcoin price is currently close to $ 40,000 per coin. The fledgling cryptocurrency network might not have made it this far had it not been for the dark web marketplace created by Ross Ulbritch, Silk Road.
Back when no one knew what to pay for Bitcoin or had widely used it as currency, it had an early go-ahead for paying for illegal goods like drugs, firearms, or explosives.
Bitcoin has a head start as a currency thanks to Silk Road’s dark web marketplace Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com
Eventually the Silk Road was demolished and Bitcoin lived on. However, its role as the currency for the dark web has remained until now.
Related reading | Alleged drug dealer arrested on the Silk Road for using Bitcoin to launder money
According to Twitter chatter, the dark web’s most active marketplace known as the White House Market has finally given up Bitcoin and is now only accepting the Monero privacy coin. But why?
For the first time on the darknet, the most active market does not accept Bitcoin. The White House market uses Monero, a cryptocurrency that protects the privacy of its previous owners like cash.
– dark.fail (@DarkDotFail) January 14, 2021
Why Dark Net marketplaces prefer Monero to other cryptocurrencies
As Bitcoin takes center stage in the financial world and its value increases, the value it offers the dark internet in terms of privacy is decreasing day by day.
Bitcoin is now an asset that institutions control, and its market capitalization is approaching $ 1 trillion. It has got the attention of state regulators, and because of its design and popularity, blockchain analytics companies can now trace BTC transactions back to the source with sufficient accuracy. Government agencies have started using them to tackle crimes hidden behind crypto.
Related reading | Bitcoin Dark Web saw a 65% increase in value in 2020
Criminals can no longer hide behind the low levels of data protection that the top cryptocurrency can offer, even though their use on the dark internet is increasing year on year in 2020. Instead, the only option is to look for privacy tokens that obscure sender and recipient information.
Will Monero grow now that it is the primary cryptocurrency accepted in the White House market? | Source: XMRUSD on TradingView.com
Monero is the undisputed king of privacy coins and offers the best protection against transaction details. That is why the White House market has selected it as its currency of choice.
Government agencies have become increasingly successful in conquering dark web markets and this could be due to their better understanding of the Bitcoin blockchain. Will Monero be enough to keep Bitcoin’s headlights and government searchlights off the dark web?
Featured image from deposit photos, charts from TradingView.com
