Pig butchering, a form of romance fraud in which victims are groomed into sending money to fake crypto investment schemes, has grown into a multibillion-dollar industry, according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic’s 2025 Typologies Report. The study points to increasingly organized methods of laundering stolen funds using practices that resemble professional financial operations. Elliptic’s investigators found that scammers often pool victims' deposits into self-hosted wallets used only to consolidate and move funds. From there, the money flows through chains of transactions designed to obscure its origin, sometimes passing through cross-chain bridges or payment processing services that offer a veneer of legitimacy. A common tactic involves using mule accounts at regulated crypto platforms. These accounts frequently share suspicious markers such as identical residential addresses, repeated IP logins, and patterns of transfers between accounts. Photos submitted for compliance checks sometimes show operators working out of call centers or warehouses in Southeast Asian countries where pig-butchering operations are known to originate. The report underscores that, unlike cash-based crime, blockchain leaves behind visible transaction trails. This transparency gives regulators and platforms new tools to spot suspicious activity even as scammers refine their methods. Elliptic also warns that pig butchering is only one piece of a broader picture. The report also detailed how individuals facing official sanctions are increasingly turning to stablecoins for cross-border transactions.
