Singapore Police and Exchanges Foil S$8.94 Million Crypto Scam

Singapore's police force and cryptocurrency exchanges have joined forces to combat scams, preventing over S$8.94 million in losses for more than 355 victims in July and August.

The fourth anti-cryptocurrency scam operation was conducted from July 1 to August 31 by the Singapore Police Force’s Cyber Command in partnership with digital payment token (DPT) service providers including Coinbase, Coinhako, DTCPay, Gemini, Independent Reserve, OKX, StraitsX and Upbit.

Through advanced blockchain analysis using tools from Chainalysis and TRM Labs, officers identified victims of various scams, including government officials impersonation, investment, and job scams. Participating DPT service providers supplied customer information to aid in the identification of victims, allowing officers to intervene over the phone and in-person.

The operation also led to the identification of 50 overseas victims, with the police sharing blockchain intelligence with foreign law enforcement counterparts, including the United States’ Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybercrime Squad New South Wales Police Force.