The UN has recorded an explosive growth in crypto scams: losses exceeded $114 billion in 2025.
The scale of organized crime in the field of cryptocurrency fraud has reached alarming proportions. According to a new analysis, the total damage from scam operations in East and Southeast Asia, as well as Australia and New Zealand, for 2025 is estimated to range from $88.3 to $114.1 billion. These are not just numbers — they are an indicator of a fundamental restructuring of the criminal economy.
For comparison, in 2023, similar losses amounted to only $18–37 billion. Thus, over two years, the volume of theft has roughly tripled. Experts emphasize that these estimates are conservative, as they are based on officially recorded cases and the presumed proportion of victims who do not report to law enforcement. The actual figures could be significantly higher.
Among the countries with the highest official losses in 2024–2025, China ($5.1 billion), the Republic of Korea ($3.5 billion), and Taiwan ($2.8 billion) lead. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Cryptocurrencies as the Financial Infrastructure of Crime
Special attention in the report is given to the role of digital assets. The USDT stablecoin on the TRON network has essentially become a parallel financial system for criminal groups. This combination provides almost instantaneous, cheap, and pseudonymous cross-border transfers that are nearly impossible to trace using traditional methods. Through P2P platforms and over-the-counter brokers, attackers easily convert fiat money into stablecoins and back, bypassing banking controls.
Criminal syndicates no longer operate in isolation. They have created a unified cross-border network that combines infrastructure for fraud, money laundering, human trafficking, and data collection. This model, which experts compare to corporate franchising, allows attacks to be scaled with unprecedented efficiency.
Technology at the Service of Fraudsters
Generative AI and deepfakes have become standard tools for scammers. Voice cloning technologies, fake video creation, and automated phishing lower the entry barrier for small groups. Notably, there has been a 42% increase in the use of legitimate advertising networks to distribute malware and phishing pages. Additionally, satellite internet, including Starlink, allows criminals to operate in hard-to-reach regions, making them independent of local telecom operators.
Expert opinion: The current situation resembles an arms race. While regulators and law enforcement develop countermeasures, criminals are adopting the most advanced technologies. Simply disrupting individual operations is ineffective — it is necessary to confiscate assets and specifically dismantle the financial infrastructure based on cryptocurrencies. Without this, we will only watch as networks rebuild in new jurisdictions, and the damage continues to grow exponentially.