With all the attention crypto is beginning to get from governments and all the regulations and laws they're considering, I think it probably won't be long before we have to start utilizing the darknet to transact with them.

I disagree. What I was saying is that crypto is already well regulated and clearly defined as property. It won't be banned because it is no threat to the government monetary monopoly in any country. It's digital property and all activities around it generate taxable income, which governments love. For example, while China does not like how Bitcoin is used to skirt the restrictions on the movement of capital, it gladly allows the Bitcoin miners to operate in Sichuan because the excess hydroelectric power generating capacity in the province would otherwise be completely wasted and the provincial and local governments would lose all the tax revenue from the miners.

If crypto were banned and forced to go underground, all institutional involvement would come to a complete halt and the valuations of all cryptocurrencies would crater.

Using a reliable VPN also makes perfect sense for a ton of reasons other than evading government scrutiny.