A Singapore minister, speaking to the camera, was shown endorsing a cryptocurrency investment scheme promising high returns. So Mr Victor, 75, thought it carried a stamp of credibility. He wanted to stretch his retirement funds. The video was a deepfake.
In the group, members were discussing a seemingly lucrative cryptocurrency investment scheme. Hours later, he received a call from someone claiming to be from Coinbase – which he knew, based on his own research, to be a legitimate US-based crypto exchange. Speaking in English, the caller talked about the benefits of trading on Coinbase and said a colleague would follow up to guide Mr Victor through the process. Supt McIntyre also notes an increase in cryptocurrency-related scam transactions.
She explains that scammers exploit cryptocurrency’s high-risk, high-return perception to pressure victims into “seizing this golden opportunity” – by investing larger sums of money to “grow investments” faster. Police figures show cryptocurrency losses formed 17.9 per cent of total scam losses in the first half of 2025, at about $81.6 million. The decentralised and pseudonymous nature of cryptocurrencies makes investigation and fund recovery efforts very challenging, as it is hard to trace funds and identify beneficiaries, says Supt McIntyre. Cryptocurrency transactions are also fast and irreversible, allowing scammers to move proceeds across borders quickly without going through traditional banking intermediaries.
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