Victims were instructed to transfer about 3.4 million XRP from domestic exchanges to wallets via an overseas exchange; once funds moved, the site was shut down and the perpetrators fled.

The scammers seeded misinformation through blogs, online articles, Wikipedia, and YouTube with paid actors to create the illusion of independent corroboration.

XRP trading activity is robust in South Korea, fueling retail interest and making XRP a frequent target for fraudsters seeking to exploit optimism.

A cryptocurrency scam in Seoul led to three arrests and an Interpol Red Notice for an additional suspect, involving about 12.3 billion won (roughly US$8.55 million) defrauded from 71 investors in October 2025.

The ring operated a fraudulent site, Fxrpntwork.com, and used portal blogs, online articles, and YouTube videos to promise guaranteed principal returns and monthly gains of 1.5 to 1.8 percent to lure investors.

The operation relied on a broad misinformation strategy, including fake advertising and cross-platform content designed to entice victims.

Authorities believe the scam may total as much as $19 million in XRP and involved impersonating the legitimate Flare Network across blogs, news articles, Wikipedia, and YouTube to promote the scheme.

Crypto analytics firm Chainalysis highlights significant crypto losses from scams in 2025, underscoring the wider risk landscape for investors.

Flare Network, an XRP-linked project, is mentioned amid rising crypto scams and impersonation concerns, reflecting global worries about fraud and AI-driven impersonation techniques.

Authorities traced 27.3 billion won ($18.8 million) through wallets linked to the group, freezing 17.3 billion won of assets across overseas exchanges, with another 10 billion won moved during the investigation and remaining unaccounted for.

Police began investigating in October last year after intelligence on rising crypto fraud, tracing transactions and freezing suspects’ wallets within three days to limit losses.

Two 29-year-old men were referred to prosecutors on aggravated fraud charges based on Seoul police investigations.