How money moves
A bank transfer and an onchain transfer, side by side
Press a send button below and watch what each system records. The difference in what is written down is the reason cryptocurrency cases need forensic tracing.
John Carter
Acct •••• 4417 · Verified customer
Identity on record
Banking network · named rails
Mary Ellis
Acct •••• 8802 · Verified customer
Identity on record
- 1John signs in to his bank — identity already verified (KYC).
- 2Bank debits John's account and records his name, address and account number.
- 3Payment is routed through the banking network with both parties named.
- 4Mary's bank credits her account. A named, reversible, auditable record exists.
What the bank knows
- Legal names of both parties
- Verified addresses and ID documents
- A regulated institution you can write to
- Payments can sometimes be recalled or frozen
What the network knows
- Two addresses — no names attached
- The amount, the time, and the fee
- No sign-up, no ID, no central operator
- Confirmed transfers cannot be reversed
Pseudonymous is not the same as untraceable
Every onchain movement is permanently public. Nobody's name is written on it, but the path is. Forensic work follows that path across wallets, bridges and services until funds reach a regulated business that does hold identity records — and that is the point where a structured evidence report becomes useful to exchanges, banks and law enforcement.
Illustrative example only. Names, wallet addresses and amounts are fictional and shown for explanation. Wallsec does not guarantee any particular outcome in an individual case.