The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) released its latest report revealing that crypto-related fraud losses in the United States hit $11.366 billion in 2025, with 181,565 complaints filed and an average loss of $62,604 per incident. Both the loss amount and complaint volume rose 22% and 21% respectively from 2024, marking the highest levels ever recorded by the agency for digital-asset scams.
Investment Scams Dominate, Seniors Hit Hardest
Investment scams drove the bulk of damage: IC3 logged 61,559 crypto-related investment fraud complaints totaling $7.277 billion. Extortion ranked second by volume at 23,797 complaints. Tech support and personal data breach cases also remained significant. The report linked digital-asset complaints to AI-related losses of $741.6 million, with 22,364 AI-linked complaints across scam categories totaling $893.3 million.
Americans aged 60 and older filed 44,555 digital-asset complaints and reported $4.432 billion in losses – roughly 40% of the overall total. Within that age group, investment scams alone accounted for $2.764 billion. Crypto kiosks added another headache: IC3 received 13,460 ATM/kiosk complaints with $389 million in damages, of which seniors bore $257.5 million. Recovery scams also surged: 10,516 complaints caused $1.4 billion in harm, often targeting previous scam victims.
State Breakdown: California Leads with $2.1 Billion
Geographically, California topped all states at $2.099 billion, followed by Texas, Florida, New York, and Oregon. Nearly 18,589 complainants reported losing more than $100,000, confirming many schemes aimed for life-changing sums rather than small payments.
Enforcement & Regulation: DOJ Seized $637M in Crypto
The Justice Department's Scam Center Strike Force, formed in 2025, targeted Southeast Asian scam compounds and seized over $637 million in digital assets tied to operations in Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. An earlier forfeiture action netted more than $80 million. State-level scrutiny is tightening: Connecticut suspended Bitcoin Depot Operating LLC; West Virginia brought virtual currency kiosks under money transmission rules; Minnesota advanced legislation to ban virtual currency kiosks from August 1, 2026. Chainalysis estimated worldwide 2025 digital-asset scam damage could exceed $17 billion as more illicit wallet addresses are identified.
Despite the record losses, Chainalysis noted that illicit activity still accounted for less than 1% of total digital-asset transaction volume in 2025. The gap between low illicit share and high reported losses suggests identity checks, faster reporting, and stricter kiosk rules will remain central to the crypto landscape in 2026.