$439 million recovered in global financial crime crackdown
Authorities around the world have recovered $439 million from criminals following a months-long operation led by INTERPOL. The effort, called HAECHI VI, ran from April through August 2025 and involved police in 40 countries and territories working together to track and seize stolen funds.
Digital devices used to in Portugal to divert social security funds meant to support vulnerable families (Source: INTERPOL)
The operation targeted a range of online financial crimes that have become increasingly common in recent years. These included voice phishing, romance scams, online sextortion, business email compromise, investment fraud, e-commerce scams, and money laundering linked to illegal online gambling.
Tracking stolen money across borders
As part of HAECHI VI, investigators blocked more than 68,000 bank accounts used to move illicit funds. They also froze nearly 400 cryptocurrency wallets connected to criminal networks.
Out of the total amount recovered, about $342 million came from traditional bank accounts and other government-issued currencies. Authorities also recovered $97 million in physical and virtual assets, along with roughly $16 million in cryptocurrency.
INTERPOL said these results were made possible by its International Fraud Awareness Platform and a tool known as I-GRIP, which allows participating countries to share information quickly and stop transfers before criminals can move the money out of reach.
Key cases around the world
Several countries reported major successes during the operation. In Portugal, police broke up a group accused of stealing social security payments meant for vulnerable families. Investigators said the group had diverted money by changing account details without the victims’ knowledge. Forty-five people were arrested and about $270,000 was recovered, affecting 531 victims.
In Thailand, authorities seized $6.6 million in a business email compromise case. Criminals had posed as a trusted business partner and convinced a major Japanese company to transfer money into a fraudulent account.
In another case, officials in South Korea and the United Arab Emirates worked together to stop a scheme involving forged shipping documents. By acting quickly through the I-GRIP system, they recovered nearly $4 million before the criminals could withdraw it.