Short answer: no. Not in 2024 and beyond.
Bitcoin mixing, also often called bitcoin tumbling, is a way people attempt to hide the source of their crypto. Since all Bitcoin transactions, and those of other major crypto currencies like Ethereum (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC), are on a public ledger called the blockchain, the source of anyone’s coins can be easily traced by everyone.
For many years, people used services called mixers to hide the origin of their bitcoins. These services would accept your Bitcoin deposit, add it to their pool of funds, and then send you different coins from their pool, minus a service fee. For a time, this way an effective way of obfuscating the origins of your funds.
Unfortunately for crypto enthusiasts, criminals have used this ability to make Bitcoin anonymous for nefarious purposes… purchasing drugs on the dark web, money laundering, tax evasion, and worse. However, there are many good reasons that honest users want to hide the source of their crypto currency, and where they send it. Most people wouldn’t want every store that swipes their credit card to know how much money they have in the bank, exactly when and where they got it, and every other place they have ever used their card. That is exactly what happens when you use Bitcoin normally.
Blockchain Tracking Changed the Game. Bitcoin Mixing Is No Longer Safe.
These days, however, Bitcoin mixing is almost completely obsolete. Tracking technology has vastly improved. Chainalysis [chainalysis.com] and other companies have software that makes it easy to trace crypto through these mixing services.
Government agencies, financial institutions, and every stranger on earth can now trace every transaction sent using Bitcoin, Ethers, and almost all other crypto tokens.
So How Can Bitcoin Still Be Used Anonymously?
The good news is that YES, Bitcoin and other cryptos with public blockchains can still be used totally anonymously. By swapping your coin to Monero (XMR), the privacy coin that doesn’t have a public blockchain, and then back… you can hide the source of your funds from any and all prying eyes.
See our guide on How to Make Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies Anonymous for more information about how to use Monero to hide the source or destination of almost any type of crypto.