With financial crime generating 9 million victims in the UK last year alone, fraud tactics are becoming ever more elaborate and trapping new victims.

The cryptocurrency fraud ecosystem, encompassing AI and pig butchering scams, was reported to have hit $12.4 billion in a study published by Chainalysis. This type of fraud is built upon trust in a lot of cases between the scammer and individual. Many wealthy individuals are falling victim to this type of fraud, also known as an investment or romance scam, in highly-convincing circumstances. 

In 2024, revenue from pig butchering scams grew by 40%, accounting for 33.2% of all scam revenue. 

“The identity verification system used by LinkedIn, where company team members verify each other before engaging in business, is the way forward,” commented Aran Hawker, the CEO at CoinPanel. “This approach could help prevent high-yield investment scams by ensuring a legitimate financial service company is involved.” 

The average cost of investment scams is around £25,000.

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