South Korea Cracks Down on $9M XRP Scam Using Real Project Names
South Korean authorities have cracked down on a $9 million XRP scam that duped 71 investors in just seven days. The suspects, including two men aged 29, were detained by police after recruiting victims with fake fixed-return staking offers.
The group used the names of real blockchain projects like Flare Network and FXRP to make their website look legitimate. They advertised the platform on blogs, online articles, and YouTube videos, promising monthly returns between 1.5% and 1.8%. When victims transferred their XRP holdings to specific wallets on overseas exchanges, the website was closed, leaving them unable to retrieve their funds.
Police seized some of the stolen digital currency and have issued an Interpol Red Notice for a fourth suspect believed to be hiding abroad. The total financial damage may exceed $12.3 billion, as blockchain tracing reveals that wallets connected to the case handled roughly $27.3 billion in cryptocurrency transactions.