$12.7 Billion Tied to Crypto Scams Run From Asian Compounds

Financial institutions have reported activity tied to more than $12.7 billion in digital-asset investment scams, largely run from compounds in Cambodia, Laos, and Burma, according to FinCEN's latest alert.

The U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network analyzed 33,904 reports covering September 2023 through December 2025, showing a significant increase in reported sums, with an average monthly rise of 18%.

The majority of the scams used digital assets such as Ethereum, USDT, and USDC, with scammers rarely relying on invented tokens. FinCEN noted that elder exploitation appeared in approximately a quarter of the reports, highlighting the self-harm risk associated with discovering fraud.