Financial institutions reported activity tied to more than $12.7 billion in digital-asset investment scams operated largely from compounds in Cambodia, Laos and Burma, according to an alert and analysis issued this week by FinCEN (U.S. Treasury financial-crime network). The analysis covers 33,904 reports filed by about 1,300 institutions from September 2023 through December 2025. Money services businesses, mostly crypto firms, accounted for 55% of reports and flagged $5.5 billion, while banks filed 41% and identified $6.4 billion; securities firms reported the remaining $784.5 million. Reported monthly totals increased 18% on average, although FinCEN said broader use of terminology from its 2023 alert may partly explain the rise. Scammers used at least 22 digital assets, most commonly Ethereum, USDT and USDC, and blockchain analysis found that proceeds were usually converted into stablecoins (cryptocurrencies designed to track a stable value), almost exclusively USDT, before being transferred onward. About one-quarter of reports involved elder exploitation. The compounds are staffed by people the United Nations estimates number in the hundreds of thousands, many allegedly trafficked through fake job advertisements, while Interpol has warned that the model is expanding beyond Southeast Asia. FinCEN’s Rapid Response Program has interdicted $1.8 billion since 2015 and recovered just over $1 billion for 5,790 American victims, underscoring the gap between reported losses and recoveries. Victims often financed losses through retirement accounts, home-equity lines, second mortgages and personal loans; one woman sent nearly $640,000 from retirement savings, while another lost more than $1 million over six months.