quora
Read More about fast-id page

Shufti globally launches webinr-icon - a new kind of identity solution!

Shufti globally launches - a new kind of identity solution!

Read more

Hong Kong Sees 20-fold Spike in Investment Scam Losses – Report

news2

According to the Police, 725 cases of investment scams occurred within the first seven months of 2021, accounting for HK$2.5 billion in losses

Hong Kong’s police have reported an explosion in investment scams between January and July 2021, with the number of funds stolen increasing nearly 20-fold. 

Within a time span of seven months, police obtained reports of 725 investment scams resulting in losses worth HK$2.5 billion (USD 321 million), including one particular case where an individual was defrauded for HK$9 million. By comparison, 198 cases were reported by the police in the same period last year, with scammers making off with a total of HK$128 million.

2021 also marks the first time fraudsters stole NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) from the victims via phishing scams. NFTs can be defined as one-of-a-kind, non-exchangeable digital assets such as art, GIFs, games, tweets, images, videos, among other wide range of tangible and intangible objects. 

Under the FATF’s crypto travel rule, NFTs have been included in the AML framework due to the burgeoning threat of financial crimes committed through such virtual assets. 

Responding to what attributed to the investment scam spike in the country, Ngan Hoi-ian, chief inspector at the police force’s commercial crime bureau stated:

“Scammers will use social media to get close to their victims and promote ‘high return, low risk’ online investment products, but many of these products don’t actually exist,” 

He further warned that fraudulent investment products can take the form of cryptocurrencies, overseas properties, and foreign currency exchanges, and also added that scammers approached their victims on a variety of platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and even the professional networking site LinkedIn.

Romance scams were executed in combination with investment scams, the police revealed. Approximately half, or 345, of the investment scams were romance cons, with victims ranging in age from 17 to 70. The highest amount of loss recorded through this technique was HK$9 million, incurred by a single victim, a piano teacher.

Suggested Read: From Fraudsters to Artists – The Dire Need of AML Compliance for NFTs

Related Posts

News

United States Senate, UAE Government, and Spain Make Significant Efforts to Curb Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Activities

UK Parliament Legislates New Digital Identity Verification Services Bill Taiwan and Singapore St...

United States Senate, UAE Government, and Spain Make Significant Efforts to Curb Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Activities Read More

News

UK Parliament Legislates New Digital Identity Verification Services Bill

At the same time, trade bodies and digital identity service providers have consulted with the gov...

UK Parliament Legislates New Digital Identity Verification Services Bill Read More

News

Taiwan and Singapore Strengthen AML Regulations for Virtual Asset Providers and Banks

According to the recently passed amendments, overseas crypto platforms are obliged to set up loca...

Taiwan and Singapore Strengthen AML Regulations for Virtual Asset Providers and Banks Read More

News

Singapore and Europe Enhance AML Framework to Fight Financial Crimes Effectively

For the CSPs, the law mandates that they must ensure that the arranged nominees are “fit and prop...

Singapore and Europe Enhance AML Framework to Fight Financial Crimes Effectively Read More

News

Türkiye Removed From Gray List, India Recognized for Its AML Efforts, and Kuwait Urged to Have Better Money Laundering Control Measures: FATF Updates

In addition to these shortcomings, the watchdog discovered that the country’s banking, constructi...

Türkiye Removed From Gray List, India Recognized for Its AML Efforts, and Kuwait Urged to Have Better Money Laundering Control Measures: FATF Updates Read More

News

FINMA, SFC, and MAS Fine Multiple Financial Institutions Over $1.5 Billion For Money Laundering Activities

These suspicious transactions amounted to more than $300 million and were conducted between 2002 ...

FINMA, SFC, and MAS Fine Multiple Financial Institutions Over $1.5 Billion For Money Laundering Activities Read More

News

Nigeria, Myanmar, and Türkiye Take Effective Steps to Meet FATF Recommendations

Mohammad Shahid Ahmed, the Chief of Staff at NFIU, has been appointed as the Vice Chairman of the...

Nigeria, Myanmar, and  Türkiye Take Effective Steps to Meet FATF Recommendations Read More

News

Regulatory Authorities Fines TD Bank, Adelaide Casino, and SBI over $500 Million For AML Failings

In addition to this, the spokesperson also stated that the company failed to comply with due dili...

Regulatory Authorities Fines TD Bank, Adelaide Casino, and SBI over $500 Million For AML Failings Read More

News

United States Senate, UAE Government, and Spain Make Significant Efforts to Curb Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Activities

UK Parliament Legislates New Digital Identity Verification Services Bill Taiwan and Singapore St...

United States Senate, UAE Government, and Spain Make Significant Efforts to Curb Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Activities Read More

News

UK Parliament Legislates New Digital Identity Verification Services Bill

At the same time, trade bodies and digital identity service providers have consulted with the gov...

UK Parliament Legislates New Digital Identity Verification Services Bill Read More

News

Taiwan and Singapore Strengthen AML Regulations for Virtual Asset Providers and Banks

According to the recently passed amendments, overseas crypto platforms are obliged to set up loca...

Taiwan and Singapore Strengthen AML Regulations for Virtual Asset Providers and Banks Read More

News

Singapore and Europe Enhance AML Framework to Fight Financial Crimes Effectively

For the CSPs, the law mandates that they must ensure that the arranged nominees are “fit and prop...

Singapore and Europe Enhance AML Framework to Fight Financial Crimes Effectively Read More

News

Türkiye Removed From Gray List, India Recognized for Its AML Efforts, and Kuwait Urged to Have Better Money Laundering Control Measures: FATF Updates

In addition to these shortcomings, the watchdog discovered that the country’s banking, constructi...

Türkiye Removed From Gray List, India Recognized for Its AML Efforts, and Kuwait Urged to Have Better Money Laundering Control Measures: FATF Updates Read More

News

FINMA, SFC, and MAS Fine Multiple Financial Institutions Over $1.5 Billion For Money Laundering Activities

These suspicious transactions amounted to more than $300 million and were conducted between 2002 ...

FINMA, SFC, and MAS Fine Multiple Financial Institutions Over $1.5 Billion For Money Laundering Activities Read More

News

Nigeria, Myanmar, and Türkiye Take Effective Steps to Meet FATF Recommendations

Mohammad Shahid Ahmed, the Chief of Staff at NFIU, has been appointed as the Vice Chairman of the...

Nigeria, Myanmar, and  Türkiye Take Effective Steps to Meet FATF Recommendations Read More

News

Regulatory Authorities Fines TD Bank, Adelaide Casino, and SBI over $500 Million For AML Failings

In addition to this, the spokesperson also stated that the company failed to comply with due dili...

Regulatory Authorities Fines TD Bank, Adelaide Casino, and SBI over $500 Million For AML Failings Read More

Take the next steps to better security.

Contact us

Get in touch with our experts. We'll help you find the perfect solution for your compliance and security needs.

Contact us

Request demo

Get free access to our platform and try our products today.

Get started