- Organized crime networks have integrated crypto into global scam operations, the United Nations has warned
- Illicit marketplaces in Southeast Asia processed over $24 billion in crypto between 2021 and 2024, despite an increase in regulatory oversight
- Crackdowns in Myanmar, the Philippines, and Laos have pushed syndicates to expand globally
Cybercrime fueled by cryptocurrency and industrial-scale fraud has “rapidly enabled Asian crime syndicates to broaden the scope of fraud victims being targeted globally,” according to a new United Nations report. The Inflection Point report, published by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in April 2025, reveals that Southeast Asia has become the epicenter of a sprawling transnational criminal network exploiting digital finance to scale and conceal illicit operations. UNODC says the region is now “an interconnected ecosystem within which organized crime syndicates exploit vulnerabilities,” with tens of billions of dollars flowing through the networks.
Industrial-Scale Scam Centers
The report details how scam compounds across Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos have reached “industrial proportions,” housing hundreds of thousands of trafficked or coerced individuals. These centers, often disguised as casinos or tech parks, support operations that generated tens of billions of dollars in 2023 alone.
In the U.S., the FBI reported “more than US $5.6 billion in financial losses to cryptocurrency scams in 2023,” with “an estimated US $4.4 billion attributed to so-called ‘pig butchering’ schemes most prevalent in Southeast Asia.” In East and Southeast Asia combined, the UNODC estimates regional cyber-fraud losses at up to “US $37 billion during that same year.”
Cryptocurrency and the Rise of Fraud Platforms
Central to the report is Huione Guarantee (recently rebranded “Haowang”), described by the UNODC as “one of the world’s largest illicit online marketplaces by users and transaction volume.” The platform is based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and reportedly hosts “more than 970,000 users and thousands of interconnected vendors.”
According to blockchain analysis cited by the UNODC, “cryptocurrency wallets used by Huione Guarantee and its vendors have received inflows totaling at least US $24 billion over the past four years.” The report also states that the platform functions as a hub for “fraud kits, stolen data, malware, AI-driven tools, and various underground banking, money laundering and cybercrime services.”
Global Spillover and New Frontiers
UNODC warns that the criminal model is spreading to the point of no return, noting, “A potentially irreversible spillover has taken place in Southeast Asia, leaving criminal groups free to pick, choose, and move jurisdictions, operations, and value as needed.” The report documents fraud and laundering operations tied to Southeast Asian syndicates in Nigeria, Namibia, Peru, and Pacific Islands like Palau and Vanuatu.
These groups are leveraging “blockchain, cloud computing, generative artificial intelligence, and machine learning,” making them more agile and harder to trace. As the report states, “failure to address this self-sustaining ecosystem will have unprecedented consequences for Southeast Asia that reverberate globally.”
