Amidst growing fear of Bitcoin and other digital currencies being used for illegal purposes, such as money laundering, the Europol has recently set up a group meant to combat the process with the help of bitcoin.

According to recent reports, the launch of the Bitcoin money laundering division by the Europol, as a result of their partnership with the INTERPOL and the Basel Institute of Governance, may actually prove beneficial for the industry.

In the last couple of weeks, we’ve seen a large number of developments from the bitcoin market, with companies showcasing interest towards the digital currency’s underlying system, US institutions declaring bitcoin a commodity and more.

However, we’ve also seen some negative developments, which we ought to discuss about, as the Europol has just issued a report stating that it believes that it’s likely for bitcoin to become the go-to currency for internet criminals throughout Europe. Based on a report outlining the top cybercrime treats which the European Union faces, we can see how the cryptocurrency is used in illegal activities, alongside with how extortionists use bitcoin to seize funds from people.