Bitcoin 's efforts to clean up its reputation in recent years appear to be paying off . According to information provided by a senior US Drug Enforcement Administration agent specialising in cyber crime , whereas 90 % of transactions involving the cryptocurrency in 2013 involved some form of illegality , the growth of the technology as a mainstream payment platform means 90 % of transactions actually involve legitimate financial practices . Yet despite the turnaround , the volume of illegal transactions involving bitcoin has still risen significantly since 2013 , owing to the overall growth in popularity of the technology , which now accounts for $ 5bn in payments per transaction .
Bitcoin's efforts to clean up its reputation in recent years appear to be paying off. According to data provided by a senior US Drug Enforcement Administration agent specialising in cyber crime, whereas 90% of transactions involving the cryptocurrency in 2013 involved some form of illegality, the growth of the technology as a mainstream payment platform means 90% of transactions today involve legitimate financial practices. Yet despite the turnaround, the volume of illegal transactions involving bitcoin has still risen significantly since 2013, owing to the overall growth in popularity of the cryptocurrency, which now accounts for $5bn in payments per day.