Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic has released a report alleging that Cambodia-based crypto marketplace Huoine Guarantee is involved in facilitating money laundering and other illicit activities.
The report, published on Wednesday, July 10, 2024, claims that Huoine Guarantee has played a role in laundering proceeds from global scams.
Transactions linked to merchants offering data, money laundering services, and technology have totalled at least $11 billion on the crypto platform, according to the report.
Elliptic’s findings suggest that tens of billions of dollars have been stolen from victims worldwide through various online scams. The most notorious of these are “pig-butchering” scams, where fraudsters build relationships with victims before luring them into fake investment schemes. Other prevalent scams include Ponzi schemes, sextortion, and family member impersonation.
The report referenced a United States Institute of Peace study, which alleges that the majority of these scams are conducted by transnational criminal groups originating from China. These groups reportedly operate from “scam compounds” across Southeast Asia, particularly in Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar.
Elliptic also shared a photo of a scam compound in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, where local authorities, according to local reports, claim to have found evidence of kidnapping, human trafficking, and torture. The blockchain analytic firm described these compounds as prison-like structures that serve as living quarters and workplaces, surrounded by tall barbed wire fences and guarded by security personnel.
The crypto market has been rocked by numerous attacks and exploiters from malicious agents globally in 2024. A recent report from blockchain research company Scam Sniffer revealed that phishing scams in the first half of this year resulted in losses exceeding $314 million in crypto assets, a 6.44% increase from the same period last year. Of this total, $58 million came from just 20 high-value targets, with one victim suffering an $11 million loss.
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