Hong Kong police: A total of 3,468 investment fraud cases were received in the first nine months of this year, with losses of about HK $2.20 billion, and 35% involved virtual assets

The Hong Kong police yesterday announced the number and trend of online investment fraud cases. A total of 3,468 cases were received in the first nine months of this year, with a total loss of about HK $2.20 billion. Although it was down from the same period last year, the number of cases in October this year rose by 24% compared with September, indicating a recovery trend. Nearly 40% of the cases involved financial investment products, and 35% involved virtual assets. Among them, the largest single loss in virtual asset fraud was about HK $78.47 million. The victim was a female executive of a virtual currency company. The scammer was lured into opening a video conversation to discuss investment details. As a result, the password of the e-wallet account was stolen, and then a huge amount of money was transferred. Due to the increasing popularity of virtual asset investment, the police reminded investors to be vigilant against falling into scams.