australia Shuts Down 95 Crypto Scam companies
Australia has taken a strong stance against crypto fraud. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has closed 95 companies involved in crypto investment and romance scams. These firms pretended to be legitimate businesses but were actually part of coordinated scam operations.
On april 8, the Federal Court approved ASICās request to shut down these companies. Justice Angus Stewart said the case for closing them was āoverwhelming.ā Most of these companies were registered with false information, and they were linked to āpig butcheringā schemes. In these scams, fraudsters build fake online relationships to gain trust before tricking victims into investing in fraudulent crypto platforms.
The court appointed joint liquidators to investigate the companies.They found that only three had any assets, leading to a recommendation to deregister the rest.Nearly 1,500 claims from victims in 14 countries have been received, with reported losses exceeding $35.8 million.
ASIC Deputy Chair sarah Court warned that scammers use various tactics to steal money and personal information. the agency has been aggressive in targeting such fraud, shutting down over 10,000 malicious sites, including more than 7,200 fake investment platforms and 1,500 phishing scams.
Last month, ASIC also warned crypto ATM operators to comply with anti-money laundering rules or face legal action. AUSTRAC noted a rise in suspicious transactions tied to these machines, calling for tighter oversight.
