Coinbase freezes $3M in assets amid global fraud crackdown

In a major international law enforcement operation, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase froze over $3 million in digital assets linked to extensive fraud networks based in Southeast Asia. The action was part of a coordinated effort led by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Scam Center Strike Force, which united federal agencies with major technology firms to dismantle criminal infrastructure.

The operation, which involved agencies from the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Thailand, targeted criminal groups accused of running romance scams, investment fraud, and forced labor scam compounds. Technology companies played a critical role in disrupting the networks’ online presence. Meta reported disabling more than 1.4 million fraudulent accounts, pages, and groups across Facebook and Instagram. Microsoft suspended approximately 20,000 fake accounts, while Starlink terminated internet connectivity for thousands of devices linked to the illegal operations.

Concurrently, the Royal Thai Police Anti-Cyber Scam Center arrested 63 individuals allegedly connected to these criminal enterprises. Officials stated that intelligence shared between companies and law enforcement...