Expanding dark markets on Telegram capitalize vacancies brought about by the Huione Guarantee's absence
In a significant development in the world of cybercrime, Tudou Guarantee has emerged as the dominant player in the illicit guarantee marketplace on Telegram, after the closure of Huione Guarantee in May 2025.
Huione Guarantee, the largest and most notorious guarantee marketplace ever, was shut down on May 13th. The closure came as a result of research conducted by an unspecified brand name. Following the shutdown, Tudou Guarantee absorbed a significant portion of Huione Guarantee's users and merchants, doubling its user base and processing over 300,000 transactions by mid-June.
Tudou Guarantee operates primarily in Chinese and facilitates the sale of stolen data, money laundering services, and other illicit products needed by scammers. Many merchants on Tudou Guarantee previously operated through Huione Guarantee. Blockchain analysis shows that the inflow of cryptocurrency to Tudou Guarantee, mainly through the stablecoin Tether (USDT), has reached levels comparable to those of Huione Guarantee before its closure.
Interestingly, Huione Guarantee had acquired a 30% stake in Tudou Guarantee in December 2024, indicating direct financial and operational links between the two entities. While Huione Guarantee was shut down, Huione Pay—a related payment service accused of laundering proceeds of online scams—remains operational with a network of brick-and-mortar outlets in Cambodia.
Law enforcement efforts have so far been unable to disrupt these Telegram-based black markets effectively, as users and merchants quickly migrate to new platforms like Tudou Guarantee. Analysts emphasize the need for more robust measures to halt these marketplaces, which continue to facilitate significant global scam activities and illicit transactions totaling billions of dollars.
Despite the shutdown of Huione Guarantee, the daily USDT volumes at Huione Pay have been largely unaffected. All payments on guarantee marketplaces, including Huione Guarantee and Tudou Guarantee, are in Tether's US dollar stablecoin, USDT.
In summary, Tudou Guarantee is the current dominant marketplace succeeding Huione Guarantee, thriving in the aftermath of Huione's shutdown, and remains a major hub for illicit cybercriminal activities as of July 2025. The closure of Huione Guarantee has led to an increase in user numbers for several other Telegram-based guarantee marketplaces, highlighting the resilience and adaptability of these criminal networks.
Tudou Guarantee, now thriving as the major hub for illicit cybercriminal activities, has adopted an elliptic approach in navigating the vacuum created by the closure of Huione Guarantee, absorbing a significant portion of Huione's users and merchants, and leveraging technology, particularly the stablecoin USDT, to facilitate over 300,000 transactions by mid-June. Despite law enforcement efforts, scams continue to persist on these black markets, proving their resilience and adaptability.
