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FINCEN WARNING BANKS OF RISING ROMANCE SCAMS AND BLACKMAIL

FinCEN Alerts Banks of Emerging Romance Scams and Blackmail

Author: teresa_myers | 27 Feb 2025

Treasury has issued an alert to financial organizations regarding the rapid warnings of romance scams and fraud risks by FinCEN and AML units of the United States. However, the advisory claims that banks must be vigilant against fraud plans that manipulate victims via dating apps, social media, and text messaging forums. 

The alert reinforces the United States inter-organization #DatingOrDefrauding movement, which has the purpose of highlighting awareness about relationship-based fraud. Moreover, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) introduced the beginning to show investment scams that directly connect to online romance scams. Besides, the FinCEN revealed that romance and confidence fraud reported to the FBI caused a loss of up to $650 million in 2023. 

FinCEN highlights that romance scams usually grow under a huge financial crime—-it includes blackmail and money laundering. However, the criminal web fools the victim into funds transferring, stealing amounts during money laundering or even getting fraud checks. Criminals also utilize methods like “pig butchering”. It is a method where innocent people are misled into huge financial fraud schemes. 

Financial institutions should adhere to FinCEN’s Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) filing instructions to aid law enforcement in monitoring these scams. The agency emphasizes that early reporting is key to dismantling criminal schemes victimizing vulnerable persons.