In brief
- Cambodian officials are profiting from a $19B crypto-fueled scam industry involving trafficked labor, fraud compounds, and platforms such as Huione Guarantee, a report by Humanity Research Consultancy alleges.
- Cambodia-based Huione has reportedly processed $24 billion via Telegram and launched its own stablecoin to bypass financial oversight.
- Telegram recently banned Huione-linked accounts, as UN reports warn Cambodia has become a global hub for crypto-based fraud.
Cambodia’s ruling elite is entangled in a global scam economy powered by crypto, according to a new report that links senior government officials to billion-dollar laundering networks and platforms built to evade oversight.
High-ranking members of the Cambodian People’s Party have helped enable and profit from transnational fraud schemes that rely on trafficked labor and untraceable cryptocurrencycryptocurrency, according to a May 16 report published by the Humanity Research Consultancy (HRC), an organization which campaigns against human trafficking.
One firm in particular, Huione Group, is singled out as critical infrastructure in what the report calls a “vertically integrated” scam industry now worth up to $19 billion a year, or 60% of Cambodia’s GDP.
US Treasury Moves to Cut Off Cambodia’s Huione Group From Financial System Over $4B Laundering Claims
The U.S. Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) proposed actions Thursday to sever Cambodia-based Huione Group from the U.S. financial system. "For years, Huione Group has laundered illicit proceeds from cybercrimes," the agency said in a notice of proposed rulemaking under Section 311 of the Patriot Act, identifying Huione as a "primary money laundering concern." Section 311 provides the U.S. Treasury Secretary with "a range of options" that can be adapted to target...
“Cambodia is likely the absolute global epicentre of next-gen transnational fraud in 2025,” wrote Jacob Sims, the report’s author and a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Asia Center.
Sims accuses the state of providing support “systematically and insidiously” to criminal networks operating behind scam compounds, human trafficking, and crypto rails.
Among those named is Hun To, cousin of Prime Minister Hun Manet, who sits on the board of Huione Group, parent company of Huione Guarantee, a Telegram-based escrow platform through which more than $4 billion has flowed since 2021, according to the U.S. Treasury. HRC also named Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Sar Sokha as a co-investor in one of Cambodia’s largest scam compounds.
Decrypt has reached out to the Minister’s office and will update the story if they respond.
A "focal point" for crypto scams
HRC’s findings align with a UNODC report released last month, which warned of Southeast Asia’s scam infrastructure spreading into Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America.
The report named Cambodia as a key node in this global expansion, with syndicates relocating scam operations from Sihanoukville and Phnom Penh to rural provinces including Koh Kong, Bavet, and Pursat, where new compounds have been rapidly constructed since 2022.
Illegal Crypto Mining ‘Powerful Tool’ for Cybercrime Syndicates: UN Report
The United Nations has sounded the alarm on a new phase of global organized crime, where crypto mines hum in militia-run factories, stablecoins help wash billions, and Telegram hosts black markets. A new report from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reveals that transnational criminal groups from East and Southeast Asia are rapidly expanding their operations worldwide, using illegal crypto mining as a “powerful tool” to launder billions in illicit proceeds. The report titled “...
HRC cites blockchain analytics firm Elliptic’s January report, which revealed that Huione had launched its own stablecoinstablecoin, expanding its ability to process illicit payments while bypassing traditional financial channels.
“The scale of these operations makes Cambodia a focal point for crypto-based fraud globally,” Deddy Lavid, CEO of blockchain analytics platform Cyvers, told Decrypt.
Telegram recently banned channels and accounts associated with Haowang Guarantee, a rebranded Huione Guarantee, citing violations tied to fraud and money laundering.
Telegram Pulls Plug on Haowang Guarantee Crypto Crime Syndicate
Telegram has terminated the most prolific crypto-fueled black market ever seen online, erasing a network that helped launder more than $27 billion across Asia’s cyber scam economy. On Monday, the messaging platform banned thousands of accounts linked to Haowang Guarantee, formerly Huione Guarantee, forcing the illicit marketplace to shut down almost immediately. “Telegrame were blocked all of our NFT, Channels and group… Haowang Grarantee will cease operation from now,” read a statement posted t...
What are pig butchering scams?
Huione Guarantee, had become central to laundering proceeds from romance scams, crypto investment fraud, and “pig butchering” operations targeting victims worldwide.
Pig butchering scams are where victims are emotionally groomed by fake romantic or business partners and ultimately convinced to invest large sums under false pretenses.
“Unfortunately, the use of crypto as the final payout method in pig butchering scams is widespread due to cryptocurrencies' inherent characteristics: pseudonymity, ease of cross-border transfers, and lack of centralized control,” Lavid told Decrypt.
