US and UK Impose Protective Measures against Cambodia Cryptocurrency Scam
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, together with U.K’s Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO) declared Cambodian Prince Holding Group a transnational criminal organization. U.S. losses to online investment scams totalled to over $16.6 billion, and there has been a 66%increase in Southeast Asia-based scam operations in 2024. Prince Group is a major player in Cambodia which is severed from the U.S. financial system for laundering proceeds of virtual currency scams.
This crime targets on real estate development, financial services, and consumer services in over 30 countries, and the Department of Justice made its largest forfeiture complaint against 127,271 Bitcoin, worth roughly $15 billion. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that Treasury is taking action to protect Americans by cracking down on foreign scammers. The coordinated action between the U.S. and U.K. against Southeast Asia’s scam epidemic is the most significant step taken against transnational crime groups in the region.