Pig Butchering in 2025

Pig butchering is a cryptocurrency scam that uses a fake romantic relationship to build trust with a victim. Once the scammer has convinced their target of romantic potential, they inform them of a fraudulent opportunity to earn quick, easy money. The catch? The target must place their money in a cryptocurrency account or send cryptocurrency in order to participate in an investment. Once the victim has sent their funds, the scammer drains the account and shatters the romantic illusion. “Pig butchering” is a translation of the Chinese “shā zhū pán” – many of the crime rings that run these scams work out of casinos in Southeast Asia, which can make law enforcement more difficult.

You may have already received a mysterious message from a pig butchering scammer. Their texts are often intentionally vague but intriguing, saying something like: “I’m back in town, want to meet?” Or “I will come pick up my dog later today.” These messages are designed to elicit clarifying questions. When the target responds, the scammer may apologize for getting the wrong number and then build the conversation. Pig butchering victims have also met scammers on dating websites or other social media platforms.

Once a conversation starts, the scammer begins “fattening” the pig – a crude term for building trust with the intended victim. That trust makes it possible for the victim to feel confident depositing their money into a crypto wallet according to the scammer’s instructions. The scammer may exchange pictures with their target and send small gifts. Scammers usually make themselves appear wealthy, sending photographs of fancy watches, cars, clothes, and other supposedly luxury items. This helps create the impression that the scammer is a successful businessperson who can offer sound financial advice.

The person sending the messages is entirely fictional, using a persona and photographs put together by a team of scammers. The investing website or platform is also entirely fraudulent and controlled by scammers.

After the victim transfers money to a cryptocurrency wallet, the scammer “slaughters” the pig, stealing all their money. These losses are devastating, and in many cases account for the victim’s entire life savings. Even after suffering tremendous losses, the victim often continues to receive messages from their scammer, attempting trick them into transferring even more money. Scammers may tell their victims to share their amazing investment opportunity with friends and family.

The Secret Service website states that Americans have lost billions of dollars in pig butchering scams. Americans lost over $5 billion in 2024 alone.

Pig Butchering Technology

Investors should keep in mind that pig butchering scams are run by organized crime syndicates and often employ sophisticated tactics. Pig butchering scammers have reportedly “spoofed” financial websites – that is, made fake versions of legitimate trading platforms. Artificial intelligence has made these scammers increasingly persuasive. AI can help create a fake cast of characters, complete with video calls and realistic chats, to lure in potential victims.

According to a FINRA Investor Alert, fraudsters frequently increase investor confidence by creating the illusion that their fake investment account has earned returns. Targets may even be able to withdraw from the account at first – part of a “fattening” tactic so that the victim deposits even more into the account.

Pig Butchering Scam Alerts

Pig butchering scams frequently use victims of labor trafficking to send messages. These trafficking victims may have no choice but to follow scripts.

• Scammers might persuade their victims to transfer cryptocurrency to participate in an Initial Coin Offering (ICO). Cryptocurrency is highly speculative and should be approached with extreme caution, even in legitimate scenarios.
• Foreign exchange investments have also served as instruments in this type of financial fraud.
• Pig butchering scammers may also persuade their victims to purchase stocks as part of a “pump and dump” scheme. Pump and dump schemes involve persuading unwitting members of the public to purchase shares of a stock, driving up share prices so that the fraudsters can sell all their shares for a significant profit. The victims are left with worthless shares.

Red Flags of Pig Butchering:

Any of the following red flags should be a signal to block the number of a mysterious new friend.

• The “new friend” often emphasizes the need to move quickly to secure too-good-to-be-true investment returns.
• The only way to participate in the investment is with cryptocurrency.
• The returns are well beyond what you could expect from investing in the stock market.
• The scammer may frame the cryptocurrency investment as a way to generate wealth that will facilitate a happily ever after – perhaps a retirement in an exotic locale.
• The Bottom Line: Never invest in a cryptocurrency scheme based on information you have received from someone you met online.

Pig Butchering News

A variety of regulators and law enforcement agencies have attempted to crack down on pig butchering scams.

• 2024 saw one of the largest financial fraud cases to date, when the Department of Justice filed a forfeiture action for $15 billion in Bitcoin holdings. The Chairman of Prince Group, Chen “Vincent” Zi, was charged with using “forced-labor scam compounds” in Cambodia to operate his pig butchering scams.
• In May of 2025, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Funnull Technology Inc., a company based in the Philippines that hosts websites that allegedly facilitated pig butchering scams. OFAC reports that Funnull Technology was connected to the “majority of virtual currency scam websites reported to the FBI.”
• The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a civil enforcement action in July 0f 2023 alleging that a California based company called Justby International Auctions misappropriated over $1.3 million from customers, under the guise of using the money to purchase digital assets and engage in forex trading. In this scheme, victims received fake trading records.

How to File a Pig Butchering Lawsuit

Scam victims can report these crimes to the FBI and the FTC. Criminal convictions of pig butchering scammers do happen, but it is not always possible for authorities to return lost funds to victims.

Fiduciary Rules and Pig Butchering Scams

It is not possible to file a lawsuit against an overseas crime ring, but you may be able to hold financial advisers and brokerage firms accountable.

A securities attorney may be able to help if you liquidated stocks in order to invest in a cryptocurrency scam. Brokerage firms and financial advisors are required to enforce anti-money laundering strategies and to report suspicious transactions. Purchasing large amounts of shares of low-priced stocks or liquidating shares in order to participate in an Initial Coin Offering should set off alarms for brokerage firms.

FinCEN Pig Butchering Alert

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released a Pig Butchering Alert warning financial institutions to be on the lookout for the following signs of fraud:

1. Customers expressing interest in a cryptocurrency investment with unusually high returns, especially if that customer has no history of investing in cryptocurrencies.
2. It should also raise alarm bells if the customer expresses urgency around investing in a cryptocurrency by a deadline.
3. Financial advisors should ask questions if an investor wants to liquidate a savings account–like a certificate of deposit–before it matures in order to buy cryptocurrency.
4. Similarly, if a client wants to take out a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) or a second mortgage to buy cryptocurrency, the financial advisor should consider it suspicious.
5. Fiduciaries should also note if a customer is withdrawing cryptocurrency to pay “taxes,” “fees,” or “penalties.”
6. If customers who used to make small transfers to their cryptocurrency accounts suddenly beginning to send multiple, high-value wire transfers to holding companies, limited liability corporations, and individuals with which the individual has no transaction history, the financial advisor should flag those transactions.

If you engaged in any of these types of transactions without your brokerage firm representative or financial advisor raising red flags, you may have a case for a cryptocurrency fraud attorney.

Talk to Kurta Law if You Lost Money in a Pig Butchering Scam

Our experienced cryptocurrency fraud attorneys offer free case evaluations. You do not pay any fees until we win your case. Contact Kurta Law today: (877) 600-0098.