U.S. Secret Service Amasses $400M in Crypto Seized from Scams

Over the past decade, the U.S. Secret Service’s Global Investigative Operations Center (GIOC) has amassed nearly $400 million in digital assets from various cryptocurrency frauds, forming one of the world’s largest government-held cold wallets. This accumulation has been carried out quietly as part of a broader strategy to crack down on crypto-based scams globally.

Investigators used blockchain analytics, open-source intelligence, and old-fashioned persistence to trace illicit funds. In many cases, victims poured money into fake crypto investment platforms that disappeared after showing paper profits. This trail led to funds being frozen in a single cold-storage wallet managed by the agency.

Detailed casework highlighted a Nigerian passport used to launder $4.1 million, traced through blockchain evidence following a VPN error. The scheme included “sextortion” scams, where a U.S. teen unwittingly became a money mule. That led to arrests in the U.K. after law enforcement tied the funds back to Europe.

The Secret Service has also worked closely with private-sector partners like Coinbase and Tether to freeze suspect wallets. One major bust recovered $225 million in USDT tied to romance scams. With crypto-based fraud now accounting for over half of U.S. internet crime losses—$9.3 billion in 2024 alone—this collaboration highlights the growing importance of blockchain tracking in modern law enforcement.