Binance and Coinbase join West Africa scam sweep flagging $11 million in crypto

A joint operation by U.S. authorities and West African nations led to 28 arrests and the identification of over $11 million in crypto funds flagged for freezing. Crypto exchanges Binance and Coinbase participated, with Coinbase tracing illicit funds and preventing over $415,000 in losses, while TRM Labs exposed a large-scale peer-to-peer laundering network. Meta removed 3.7 million fake social media accounts linked to the scams, and investigators identified 117 trafficking victims awaiting repatriation.