Binance and Coinbase help West Africa scam crackdown as 28 arrested

What happened

Authorities in Ghana and Nigeria arrested 28 suspects during an international crackdown on online fraud networks. Binance and Coinbase were among the private companies that helped investigators identify more than $11 million in potentially freezable funds.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced the operation on October 13. The UK National Crime Agency hosted the coordination in London from October 6 to 9, bringing together police units, crypto companies and technology firms.

In Ghana, authorities arrested 19 people in Sasaabi, near Accra, and seized 303 electronic devices. Police identified 117 people believed to have been trafficked into Ghana and forced to work for criminal groups. In Nigeria, police arrested nine suspects in Delta State and seized six laptops, 35 mobile phones and 12 routers.

Coinbase said it prevented over $415,000 in potential fraud losses and identified more than 65 victims. Meta removed over 3.7 million suspicious accounts, and investigators received intelligence on more than 30 suspected scam centers.

Why it matters

The $11 million figure covers assets that participating companies identified as potentially available for freezing. It is not money confirmed as recovered. Authorities reported separate cryptocurrency seizures but did not disclose their value, the tokens involved or how much money had been returned to victims.

Investigators in Ghana identified another 89 suspected fraud victims whose reported losses totaled approximately $8.3 million. The Justice Department did not describe this amount as money recovered during the operation.

The reported scams included fake cryptocurrency investment opportunities and criminals impersonating police officers through video calls to pressure victims into transferring money. Binance and Coinbase joined Chainalysis, Elliptic, Meta, Google and Microsoft in sharing intelligence or disrupting scam infrastructure.

Background

The operation was called Joint Disruption Week. Separate enforcement activity in late September led to additional arrests and the identification of 34 trafficking victims, which officials described as part of the activity leading up to the October coordination event.

What is still unclear

• Authorities did not disclose the value of cryptocurrency seized during the operation, the tokens involved or how much money had been returned to victims.
• The $11 million figure covers funds identified as potentially available for freezing, not money confirmed as recovered.

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