Crypto crime losses hit $4.3M amid lax rules and FOMO

Crypto crime losses reached a record high in the first half of 2025, nearly matching the total losses recorded in all of 2024.

Bill Callahan, a retired DEA agent and cryptocurrency investigator, told Cointelegraph that slow regulations, fear of missing out (FOMO), and growing crypto adoption have created conditions favourable to criminal activity.

“The rapid proliferation of new crypto assets, particularly memecoins, combined with a surge in retail investors and limited regulatory oversight, creates opportunities for criminal activity, including theft, bogus investment schemes, scams and frauds.” Callahan said.

“the bad guys have time, money and resources on their side to perfect criminal activity, and they don’t need to get it right all the time to still make a handsome profit.” he added.

security firm CertiK reported that the average loss per security incident in 2025 has been $4.3 million, with a median loss of $103,996.

Natalie Newson, senior blockchain investigator at CertiK, said a “convergence of conditions” has emboldened criminals.

“Influencers and key opinion leaders continue to launch tokens with questionable intent, profiting through tactics like sniping and leaving retail investors exposed.” she noted.

Solidus Labs found that 98.7% of tokens on the launchpad Pump.fun show signs of pump-and-dump schemes.

Newson also highlighted challenges faced by law enforcement, including limited resources, cross-jurisdictional issues, and cybercriminals’ technical sophistication.

A 2024 Chainalysis report pointed to money laundering as a significant challenge for authorities.

Hank Huang, CEO of Kronos Research, criticised regulators for “swinging from overreach to underreaction,” saying “we are seeing too little accountability.”

“the fix isn’t more crackdowns; it’s smart, targeted regulation and finding balance to continue driving mass adoption.” he argued.

Huang added that zero losses are impossible due to crypto’s decentralised and anonymous nature, and the focus should be on reducing risks for users.

“These attacks are less about targeting crypto and more about testing the limits of emerging systems.” he said.