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Two Hong Kong women lost a total of HK$9.7 million ($1.24 million) to cryptocurrency scammers in recent weeks, according to local reports. The news comes as Hong Kong police issued a public warning after more than 80 fraud cases were reported in a single week, with total losses exceeding HK$80 million (US$10.2 million).
Pig butchering via Telegram: $1 million lost
In the larger of the two cases, a woman lost more than HK$7.7 million (US$1 million). She was contacted on Telegram by someone posing as an investment expert. The scammer promised guaranteed high returns through what he described as “quantitative trading” and “AI algorithms” applied to crypto markets. Convinced by the pitch, the victim was directed to a fraudulent investment site. She made 17 separate transfers of Tether (USDT) and Ethereum from her crypto wallet to the one controlled by the scammer. She only realized something was wrong when her repeated attempts to withdraw her winnings were blocked by a series of excuses.
Police noted that scammers are increasingly exploiting crypto’s reputation for high returns by deploying buzzwords such as “AI-driven trading” and “guaranteed quantitative profits.” These expressions are common delusions with no basis in legitimate commerce.
Love scam: $256,000 drained via Instagram
The second case took place over a longer period of time and involved different tactics. A scammer first approached a woman over 50 on Instagram, interacting with her posts and sending her flirty messages daily. Over time, the scammer maintained a romantic relationship before presenting an illusory crypto investment scheme with assured profits.
The woman was initially asked to pay HK$40,000 (US$5,000) as a processing fee to open an account on a fake investment platform. She then visited a physical store seven times to exchange money for USDT and transfer it to a wallet belonging to the scammer. In total, she lost more than HK$2 million (US$256,000). Once the transfers were completed, the scammer disappeared, cutting off all contact. This is a common tactic used by romance scammers once they think they have extracted all the money possible from a victim.
Romance scams rely on months of relationship building before any financial demands. It is this extended delay that makes them effective. The victim becomes emotionally invested and trusts the scammer, making them more likely to comply.
Police warning and wider trend
Hong Kong police have called on the public to be wary of unsolicited contacts from self-proclaimed investment experts. They also called for caution in overly affectionate online relationships, especially when they ultimately involve demands for money.
Crypto scams and protocol hacks continue to increase overall. For example, Cryptopolitan recently reported that musician G Love lost 5.92 BTC (worth approximately $424,000) to a fake Ledger app. The funds were siphoned off after the victim entered their seed phrase into the fake app. Crypto detective ZachXBT traced the funds to KuCoin, where Bitcoin was laundered across multiple wallets.
