US, UK launch joint alliance targeting crypto scam centers
The US and UK created a joint law enforcement pact to target crypto and cyber-enabled investment scam centers. The US DOJ said the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Crown Prosecution Service of England and Wales, and the UK National Crime Agency signed a memorandum of understanding, calling it a first-of-its-kind agreement to disrupt these operations. The agencies will run parallel investigations, share intelligence on organized crime networks, and coordinate on which country should prosecute specific cases. Overlapping cases have already been identified, and a disruption operation with private-sector partners is planned in London in early October. The move comes as reported US losses from crypto investment fraud have surged, rising 89% from $4.57 billion in 2023 to $8.65 billion in 2025. The pact expands the Scam Center Strike Force, which targets Chinese organized crime networks running scam centers, mainly in Southeast Asia, often tied to trafficking and money laundering.
