ASIC Cracks Down on Crypto and Romance Fraud Companies in Australia

Jimmy Aki
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The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has secured Federal Court orders to shut down 95 companies suspected of running online investment scams, including “romance baiting” and “pig butchering” fraud.

The Federal Court granted ASIC’s request on “just and equitable” grounds.

Justice Angus Stewart called the evidence “overwhelming” and noted the serious trust issues tied to the way these companies were managed.

ASIC Uncovers Scam Companies and Removes Thousands of Fraudulent Websites

In a statement released on April 8, Sarah Court, Deputy Chair of ASIC, highlighted that these companies were solely created to give a false sense of credibility to scam operations.

ASIC discovered that most of these companies were incorporated using stolen or falsified information, and some mimicked legitimate trading platforms offering services in foreign exchange, digital assets, and commodity investments.

Many of the 95 targeted companies were tied to scams where victims, often groomed on social media, were duped into sending money to fake investment platforms, typically by individuals posing as romantic partners or financial advisors.

Only three of the 95 firms held any assets at all.

The rest were essentially shells built to deceive victims. Using fake identities and persuasive tactics, these scammers tricked people into transferring funds, resulting in significant losses.

Catherine Conneely and Thomas Birch from Cor Cordis have both been appointed as joint liquidators for the 95 firms.

The Deputy Chair Court emphasized that the threat of scams and identity romance fraud continues to be high, likening them to hydras, as eliminating one only results in two more emerging.

Authorities Step Up to Shield Public From Scams and Crypto Exploitation

ASIC has been actively combating online scams. It removes over 130 scam websites weekly, bringing the total number of removed sites to over 10,000.

This includes more than 7,200 fake investment platforms and 1,500 phishing scams.

According to Scamwatch, Australia reported over 601,000 scams in 2023, with losses exceeding $2.74 billion. However, in 2024, reported losses decreased by 25.9%, dropping to $2 billion.

More so, the country’s authorities recently alerted 130 individuals about the potential risk of phishing scams, which are being carried out by scammers posing as legitimate and trusted brands.

Visible progress is being made in the crypto space regarding protection from scams and exploits.

Just recently, blockchain security firm CertiK reported that crypto scams and exploits dropped to a total value of $28.8 million in March.

As crypto adoption continues to grow, more measures are becoming essential to ensure the security and integrity of the crypto space.

Government authorities and bodies are increasingly taking proactive steps to protect the public from scams while also implementing regulations designed to safeguard individuals and guide crypto companies.

About Jimmy Aki PRO INVESTOR

Based in the UK, Jimmy is an economic researcher with outstanding hands-on and heads-on experience in Macroeconomic finance analysis, forecasting and planning. He has honed his skills having worked cross-continental as a finance analyst, which gives him inter-cultural experience. He currently has a strong passion for regulation and macroeconomic trends as it allows him peek under the global bonnet to see how the world works.