Romance Scams and Crypto Investment Fraud: How Pig-Butchering Scams Work in 2025–2026

Spidanest Team — September 11, 2026

An unexpected friendly message can begin a calculated blend of romance and cryptocurrency investment fraud, often called “pig butchering.” The scammer poses as a partner, friend, or successful investor, builds trust, then directs the target to a fake trading site or app showing invented profits.

What Is Happening in 2025–2026?

Europol describes pig butchering as a hybrid of romance and investment fraud: criminals build a relationship before persuading the victim to place savings into a fraudulent cryptocurrency platform.

Contact can begin through social media, dating apps, forums, texts, or private messages. The FTC says social media was the most common contact method for investment scams across age groups in 2025, causing $1.1 billion in reported losses.

The FBI IC3 says generative artificial intelligence can create profile images, identification documents, convincing text, chatbots, cloned voices, and deepfake video. Consequently, polished writing, photographs, documents, and even video interactions may not prove that a stranger is genuine.

How the Scam Unfolds

First, the scammer creates a connection

The opening may be a match, direct message, unsolicited text, or “accidental” contact. Using public information, the scammer mirrors the target’s interests, sends frequent flattering messages, and may push the conversation to a private service.

Next comes the investment story

After building trust, the scammer claims success in cryptocurrency, stocks, or foreign-exchange trading, perhaps using secret knowledge or reliable signals. A convincing website or app then displays fake balances and profits, encouraging increasingly large transfers.

Finally, withdrawals are blocked

When the victim tries to withdraw money, the platform demands supposed taxes, commissions, verification charges, or unlocking fees. Those payments release nothing: the displayed balance was fictional, and the transferred funds went to criminals.

The Numbers Behind the Threat

The FBI IC3 received 1,008,597 complaints and reported $20.877 billion in losses during 2025. Losses rose 26% from 2024, when IC3 recorded 859,532 complaints and $16.6 billion.

Investment fraud was IC3’s costliest 2025 category at approximately $8.65 billion. Confidence and romance fraud produced 23,159 complaints and about $929.3 million in losses, up from 17,910 complaints and $672 million in 2024.

Cryptocurrency was connected to $11.36 billion in losses across multiple crime categories. Cryptocurrency kiosks accounted for more than 13,400 complaints and over $388 million, a 58% increase from 2024.

The FTC separately recorded more than $7.9 billion in 2025 investment-scam losses, with a median reported loss above $10,000. FTC and IC3 totals are not directly interchangeable because their reporting systems and categories differ. Both nevertheless show exceptionally large investment-fraud losses and the continuing role of romance and confidence tactics.

Red Flags and Warning Signs

• A stranger quickly expresses intense affection or commitment.
• The person avoids meeting or normal communication.
• An online friend or romantic interest starts discussing cryptocurrency, trading, or finances.
• Someone promises guaranteed returns, little risk, or a secret advantage.
• You are sent to an unfamiliar website or unverified app.
• Displayed profits cannot be independently confirmed or withdrawn.
• The contact pressures you to invest more, borrow, keep secrets, or act immediately.
• Payment is requested by cryptocurrency, wire transfer, gift card, payment app, or cryptocurrency kiosk.
• Supposed taxes or fees must be paid before profits are released.
• The person discourages research or isolates you from friends and family.

Protect Yourself and Your Small Business

Never send money, gifts, or cryptocurrency to an online romantic interest you have not met. Do not take investment instructions from someone known only through social media, dating, messaging, or an online group.

Tighten social media privacy settings and limit details criminals could use. Reverse-search profile images and research the person or company with terms such as “scam,” “complaint,” or “review.”

Before transferring money, discuss the relationship or opportunity with someone you trust. They may notice pressure or inconsistencies that are difficult to see from inside an emotional relationship.

Small businesses should treat unsolicited online investment proposals as high-risk, even from familiar-looking accounts. Independently confirm opportunities before transferring company funds, and teach employees that displayed profits do not prove an investment is genuine.

Do not allow one person to approve and execute a cryptocurrency or kiosk payment alone. Pause when a bank, exchange, colleague, or kiosk operator warns of possible fraud.

What to Do Now

If you suspect a scam, stop communicating and do not pay another tax, fee, or recovery charge. Contact the financial institution or cryptocurrency service involved immediately, preserve messages and transaction details, notify the platform where contact began, and report the incident to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and the FBI IC3 at IC3.gov.

Paste any suspicious message into Spidanest.ai for a free instant AI scam check.

Sources

• FTC Consumer Sentinel Network
• FTC: What to Know About Romance Scams
• FTC: Investment Scams
• FBI IC3 2025 Annual Report
• FBI IC3 2024 Annual Report