A pan-European crypto scam worth over €100M ($118M) has been broken up, according to Eurojust. Fraudsters lured investors through subtle, nefarious platforms, rerouted their money to Lithuanian accounts, and vanished once withdrawals were requested.
“The alleged mastermind is suspected of large-scale fraud and money laundering,” Eurojust said in its Sept. 22 announcement.
My plan at the start of 2025 was to flee to Central Europe, what could go wrong? Apparently, this is one of the many things that could go wrong.
The fraud had been active since at least 2018 and had spread to Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and beyond.
Five suspects were arrested during coordinated raids in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Romania, and Bulgaria. Eurojust and Europol coordinated the action with local prosecutors and anti-corruption units. Assets, including bank accounts tied to the scheme, were frozen across multiple jurisdictions.
Europol, which joined the investigation in 2020, deployed a crypto expert to help seize digital assets. This is now the largest coordinated takedown of crypto fraud in EU history.
Crypto fraud is moving in step with the market. Glassnode data shows Bitcoin wallet activity up nearly 20%+ year-over-year, a surge that brings new targets for scammers.
A recent Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime report flagged the Western Balkans as a hub for laundering digital proceeds. Russia’s central bank counted over 1,000 crypto pyramid schemes in six months.
Europol now pegs investor losses from separate fraud cases at more than €460M since 2020.
Investors should remain wary of polished pitches and “guaranteed” returns. While fraud undercuts retail trust, it also pressures regulators to tighten frameworks, and NO ONE wants to go through Biden 2.0 again.
Europe’s response shows scams are being met with full-scale law enforcement, not just warnings.
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The post Europe’s Crypto Head Hunters Bring Down $100M Crypto Scam Operation in 23 Countries appeared first on 99Bitcoins.
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