The Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Abdulrasheed Bawa, has said Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies portend huge risks to the world economy.

According to him, many criminals now play significant roles in crypto-currency markets, adding that virtual currencies had become their preferred medium of exchange.

The EFCC chairman spoke on Monday at the 38th Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime, themed, ‘Economic Crime-Who pays and who should pay?’

The event was organised by the Centre for International Documentation on Organised and Economic Crime, Jesus College, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, a statement by the EFCC spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, stated.

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Bawa was quoted as saying, “The developments in new technologies and the growth of cryptocurrencies portray a far greater danger to the world economy than ever before with many criminals playing significant roles in crypto-currency markets.

“Criminals now elect to transact or receive illegal monies (such as ransom money) for cyber-attacks in cryptocurrencies with Bitcoins and Ethereum as the most commonly used mediums for these exchanges.”

He lamented that the sophistication and complexity that defines the dynamics of economic crime in the 21st Century continues to evolve, spurred by technological advancement in the global economy that has become borderless and transnational.

This he said had “inevitably led to the prioritisation of law enforcement action on crimes that drive Illicit Financial Flows across the globe”.