Coinbase freezes $3 million in crypto as DOJ-Led operation targets Southeast Asia scam networks

Leading crypto exchange Coinbase froze more than $3 million in cryptocurrency tied to a global operation targeting cyber-enabled crypto scam networks in Southeast Asia, the exchange said this week.

The action was part of Disruption Week, led by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Scam Center Strike Force, which brought together government agencies and private industry to combat crypto fraud targeting Americans. Coinbase shared intelligence gathered during the operation with Meta, Microsoft, Starlink, the DOJ and global law enforcement partners.

The targets included criminal groups involved in romance scams, investment fraud and forced-labor scam compounds. Meta, Microsoft and Starlink worked to take down servers and hosting infrastructure linked to scam networks, disrupting activity across more than 1.4 million social media and email accounts.

The operation led to several arrests by the Royal Thai Police Anti-Cyber Scam Center. Other participants included the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service and law enforcement partners in the UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Thailand.

Meta said shared intelligence helped identify scam locations, accounts, infrastructure and networks for law enforcement review, with the collective effort enabling the operation to target criminals at nearly every point in the fraud chain.

Coinbase argued that blockchain technology gives law enforcement something traditional financial systems often cannot, a transparent, immutable and permanent record of every transaction, making it easier for investigators to follow stolen funds after victims send crypto to scammers.

The DOJ has described pig butchering and investment scams as among the most damaging fraud types targeting Americans. The FBI reported earlier this month that American losses from crypto- and AI-related scams in 2025 exceeded $11 billion, with investment scams the most damaging category.