HODL Your Life Savings: Americans Drop $11.4B on Crypto Scams in 2025, Seniors Leading the Way

Crypto fraud hit a not-so-coveted all-time high in 2025, as Americans reported $11.366 billion in losses—a 22% jump from the year prior. The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) received 181,565 crypto-related complaints last year, up 21% year-over-year. The average victim lost $62,604, while 18,589 people saw six-figure losses. For those keeping score at home, that's roughly the GDP of a small island nation—except instead of tourism, the exports were rug pulls and pig butchering schemes.

Investment scams remained the bread and butter for crypto fraudsters, accounting for $7.228 billion in losses—a 25% spike from 2024. Complaints in this category jumped 48%. Because nothing says "guaranteed 10x returns" like a DM from a stranger on Telegram promising to make you rich while simultaneously draining your wallet faster than a degen on leverage.

"The FBI remains fully committed to ensuring Americans' safety online," Jose Perez, Operations Director for the Bureau's Criminal and Cyber Branch, said in the report, which also referenced the recent executive order targeting cybercrime, fraud, and foreign scam centers. One can only hope their commitment scales with the $11.3 billion and counting.

"The FBI's $11.3 billion number is 'an important benchmark' that tracks growth, but captures only part of the picture," Ari Redbord, global head of policy at blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs, told Decrypt, estimating global fraud at around $35 billion with just 15% of victims reporting. So the real number is probably somewhere between "yikes" and "we're all going to hell in a handbasket."

Seniors got hit the hardest. Americans aged 60 and older filed 44,555 complaints and lost $4.432 billion—more than any other age group. That's nearly double the $2.139 billion lost by victims in their 50s, and a steep climb from the $2.8 billion seniors lost in 2024, when they accounted for roughly 30% of all crypto fraud despite making up only about 17% of the U.S. population. Apparently, "trust but verify" doesn't translate well when someone promises to teach you about "the blockchain" while asking for your Social Security number.

Crypto ATM and kiosk fraud continued its rapid climb in 2025, with 13,460 complaints generating $389 million in losses—a 58% increase in losses and a 23% rise in complaints from 2024. Older Americans accounted for $257.4 million in losses across 6,188 complaints, as scammers increasingly exploited accessible payment methods like QR codes and kiosks to target seniors. Nothing says "Web3 adoption" quite like a grandmother feeding cash into a kiosk at her local bodega while a scammer watches from halfway across the world.

Recovery scams, where fraudsters pose as entities offering to recover lost funds, added another $1.4 billion in crypto losses, often combining impersonation tactics with prior victim targeting. Because getting scammed once wasn't enough—now fraudsters are running loyalty programs.

California led all states in crypto-related complaints and losses at $2.099 billion, followed by Texas at $1.016 billion, Florida at $914.5 million, and New York at $593.4 million. Oregon ranked fifth in losses at $545.9 million despite placing 24th in complaint volume. One can only assume Oregonians are either very quiet about getting fleeced or really good at HODLing their losses.

The FBI said its "Operation Level Up," countering crypto investment scams, has notified over 8,000 victims and helped prevent more than $500 million in losses, including $225.9 million in 2025 alone. Kudos to the FBI for doing the lord's work, though one does wonder if "Level Up" is a reference to how sophisticated these scams have become.

Legislators are pushing back. Minnesota lawmakers are considering a total ban on crypto ATMs with HF 3642, introduced by Rep. Erin Koegel. West Virginia's Governor signed legislation bringing crypto kiosks under money transmission licensing rules. Connecticut suspended Bitcoin Depot's state operating license after regulators found the company overcharged users and failed to fully refund fraud victims—culminating in the CEO's resignation. Nothing says "responsible corporate governance" like overcharging victims and then walking away with a golden parachute.

"By the time a victim is at a kiosk, they are already deep in the scammer's trance," Stefan Muehlbauer, CertiK's Head of U.S. Government Affairs, told Decrypt, adding that regulations are "a vital hurdle that slows down the speed of the fraud, but they are only one piece of a much larger puzzle." He called for a "defense-in-depth" approach, warning that as crypto ATMs are restricted, scammers shift to "more sophisticated methods" like social engineering using deepfakes. So basically, we're playing whack-a-mole but the moles have AI now.

Looking ahead, scam volumes in 2026 are "expected to evolve rather than disappear," Muehlbauer noted. "These are highly organized, global operations that are getting more sophisticated, including with AI," Redbord added. "So I'd expect volumes to keep growing, even if the rate fluctuates year to year as the lawful ecosystem grows in parallel." In other words, buckle up, buttercup.

Meanwhile, Cambodia's National Assembly unanimously passed a draft law targeting cyber scams, introducing prison terms of up to life for those running large-scale fraud networks. Somewhere, a scam call center in Phnom Penh is having a very bad day.