TLDR:
- Treasury sanctions hit scam hubs in Burma and Cambodia after Americans lost $10B to crypto scams in 2024.
- Scam centers in Shwe Kokko and Sihanoukville used trafficked labor to run fake crypto investment platforms.
- OFAC targeted groups linked to the Karen National Army and Chinese investors running Cambodian casinos.
- Sanctioned companies face frozen assets under U.S. law as Treasury invokes Global Magnitsky authority.
Crypto scams in Southeast Asia have escalated into a billion-dollar threat targeting Americans. Forced labor, online fraud, and digital assets collide in a growing criminal industry. Washington has now responded with sanctions aimed at the people and businesses driving these operations.
The crackdown spans Burma and Cambodia, hitting networks that blend crypto scams with human trafficking. According to the Treasury, this action marks a broad use of the Global Magnitsky Act against crypto-linked crime.
Crypto Scam Centers in Burma
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions on groups tied to scam hubs in Burma. Officials said the Karen National Army (KNA) sheltered criminal operations in Shwe Kokko, a region now infamous for crypto investment fraud.
According to Treasury reports, Americans lost more than $10 billion to Southeast Asia-based scams in 2024. Victims were often tricked into fake crypto investments through platforms built to mimic legitimate exchanges. The scams relied on coerced workers, who were trafficked and forced to meet daily quotas of American targets.
The KNA profited by hosting the Yatai New City complex in Shwe Kokko. This city was transformed into a hub for scams, gambling, and trafficking under the leadership of She Zhijiang and Saw Chit Thu.
Escaped workers described brutal conditions, including forced sex work and beatings for failing quotas.
OFAC targeted multiple companies linked to the KNA, including Chit Linn Myaing Co. and Shwe Myint Thaung Yinn Industry. Treasury confirmed these entities supplied the infrastructure that kept the scam compounds operating.
Cambodian Casino Compounds Driving Crypto Scams
Scam operations also flourished in Cambodia, where former casinos became centers for crypto fraud. OFAC said Chinese investors turned hotel and casino properties in Sihanoukville into scam compounds, using trafficked labor to target online victims.
T C Capital, owner of the Golden Sun Sky Casino, was sanctioned for operating scam centers and laundering proceeds. Officials linked the group to Dong Lecheng, who was previously convicted of money laundering in China.
Another group, K B Hotel Co., ran a casino complex where trafficked workers were forced into online fraud. OFAC identified Xu Aimin, a co-founder with a past prison term in China for illegal gambling, as a key operator.
Treasury also sanctioned Heng He Bavet and M D S Heng He, which ran scam compounds in other Cambodian cities. These networks were tied to trafficking victims from Sihanoukville and connected to a Cambodian tycoon already designated under U.S. law.
All sanctioned individuals and entities now face asset freezes under U.S. jurisdiction. Financial institutions were warned against transactions involving the targeted groups. Treasury stressed that sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act are designed to hold perpetrators of human rights abuse and corruption accountable.
