Ukraine says it shut down a Kyiv crypto fraud network targeting EU citizens

Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) and National Police have shut down a Kyiv-based criminal network accused of running fake cryptocurrency investment platforms to steal digital assets from citizens across the European Union, the agencies announced on 1 September.

How the Scheme Worked

The organizer, identified as a 25-year-old IT specialist from Kyiv, recruited several dozen IT professionals from the capital who posed as representatives of legitimate cryptocurrency platforms. To find potential victims, the criminals mass-distributed advertisements for supposedly high-yield investment projects on popular Telegram channels. To convince targets of the reliability of the investments, the scammers showed them fake trading results and fabricated metrics of successful transactions. Victims were then directed to counterfeit sites where approving a transaction handed full control of their crypto assets to the operators.

The SBU says the alleged scheme's monthly turnover from stolen funds could reach $1 million during its most lucrative periods.

Searches, Seizures and Broader Pattern

Officers carried out 23 searches as part of the operation, seizing 16 vehicles including Porsche, BMW and Mercedes-Benz models. The SBU said the network used fake cryptocurrency investment platforms and malicious code to steal digital assets from citizens of EU countries.

The Kyiv bust is part of a wider enforcement trend in Ukraine. In February, as part of an international joint investigation team coordinated by Eurojust, a network of fraudulent call centers operating in Dnipro was dismantled in a large-scale special operation conducted in collaboration with law enforcement agencies from Latvia and Lithuania. Ukraine has also previously joined with foreign agencies to pursue cross-border cyber threats, including working with the FBI, EU law enforcement, and Polish counterintelligence to disrupt Russian military-intelligence spying through hacked routers.

Sources:
Euromaidan Press: Ukraine says it busted a Kyiv crypto ring that drained EU citizens' wallets
UA.NEWS: The SBU has uncovered a network of crypto scammers in Kyiv with a turnover in the millions
Dev.ua: SBU and National Police expose Kyiv IT crypto fraudsters with $1 million monthly turnover