U.S. Treasury to Block Cambodia’s Huione From Banking Services Over $4B Laundering

Jimmy Aki
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The U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced its decision on May 1 to restrict the Huione Group’s access to the American banking system after tracing roughly $4 billion in illicit funds through the Cambodian conglomerate since August 2021.

Investigators have linked at least $37 million of the flow to North Korea’s Lazarus Group cyber‑heists and another $36 million to crypto “pig‑butchering” investment scams.

https://x.com/chainalysis/status/1918044174903128536

Regulators Plan to Sever Banking Ties to Disrupt Cybercrime and Scam Pipelines

FinCEN’s proposed rule, issued under Section 311 of the Patriot Act, would block U.S. banks from holding correspondent or payable‑through accounts for Huione or its affiliates.

This is a list including Huione Pay, crypto exchange Huione Crypto, and escrow marketplace Huione Guarantee.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the measure targets the “marketplace of choice for threat actors who stole billions from everyday Americans,” adding that cutting correspondent ties would hinder their money‑laundering flow.

Officials say Huione functions as a “one‑stop shop” that converts tainted crypto into fiat currency. The network even minted its own dollar‑pegged stablecoin, USD Huione (USDH), which regulators claim cannot be frozen and therefore eases laundering.

Although Huione holds no direct accounts with U.S. institutions, its foreign banking partners do—giving FinCEN the jurisdiction needed to intervene.

Regulators accuse Huione of poor anti‑money‑laundering and know‑your‑customer controls.

Cambodia’s central bank echoed those concerns, revoking Huione Pay’s license in January and prohibiting local payment firms from dealing with its digital assets.

The rule faces a 30‑day public comment period before taking effect, but FinCEN rarely retreats once it tags an entity a “primary money‑laundering concern.”

If finalized, the ban would isolate Huione from dollar clearing and squeeze a vital corridor for North Korean hackers and Southeast Asian scam syndicates.

Law Enforcement’s Crackdown Against Suspicious Crypto Organisations and Scammers Intensifies

Despite the U.S.’s apparent crypto-friendly policies, it has not held back in punishing lawbreakers and scammers.

This comes hot after the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) revealed a 66% surge in crypto fraud losses, from $5.6 billion in 2023 to more than $9 billion in 2024, based on over 140,000 complaints to its Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).

Victims aged 60 and over filed roughly 33,000 reports, losing $2.8 billion. California and Texas led U.S. losses at $1.39 billion and $738 million, respectively.

Ransomware attacks climbed 9%, locking critical systems for crypto payments, while sextortion and “pig butchering” investment scams proliferated.

In other news, authorities arrested a Nigerian national for a $2.5 million crypto romance scheme. While investigators expect further arrests, the individual is facing charges that could lead to a 40 years prison sentence.

Additionally, the crypto community continues to look out for one another, sharing updates on scammers’ latest tactics, from fraudulent job listings to fake Zoom calls targeting developers.

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.