elderly fraud

FinCEN

2026-09-04 10:27:37

FinCEN Links $12.7B in Suspicious Activity to Southeast Asian Crypto Scam Compounds

The U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued an analysis and alert linking approximately $12.7 billion in suspicious financial activity to crypto investment frauds operated from Southeast Asian compounds. About 1,300 institutions filed 33,904 Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) from September 2023 to December 2025. Money services businesses, primarily crypto firms, submitted 55% of reports ($5.5B), banks 41% ($6.4B), and securities firms the rest ($784.5M). Reports grew at an average monthly rate of 10.9%, and dollar amounts rose 18%. Scammers used at least 22 digital assets, most commonly Ethereum, USDT, and USDC. Funds were almost always converted to stablecoins, predominantly USDT, and moved via DeFi protocols or non-U.S. exchanges. About 25% of cases involved seniors, proportionate to the population share. The compounds are mainly in Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. U.S. authorities have seized over $25 million in related funds this year.

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Hong Kong

2026-08-18 16:11:36

Hong Kong man in his 80s loses more than HK$5 million in fake crypto app scam

Hong Kong police have disclosed a cryptocurrency investment scam targeting older residents. An 80-something retired man clicked a fake link in a pop-up ad in June, downloaded a counterfeit app posing as a crypto platform called "Trust Wallet," and was later contacted by scammers pretending to be customer service. They lured him with promises of "high returns" and "making big money." According to police, he withdrew cash from banks, exchanged it for cryptocurrency at a crypto exchange shop, and over the following month and a half transferred ETH worth more than HK$5 million to wallets controlled by the scammers. He only realized he had been cheated after he could no longer withdraw funds from the fake app and the fake customer service cut off contact. Police urged families to pay attention to older relatives' internet habits and financial situations and to share anti-scam information proactively.

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