MoonPay execs fall victim to $250K crypto scam: ‘Accounts originating from Nigeria’

Key Points

1. MoonPay's CEO and CFO lost over $250,000 in a scam involving 40,350 USDT, now frozen and under government recovery.

2. The scam emails originated from Nigeria, falsely impersonating a U.S. real estate developer linked to Donald Trump.

3. The FBI's IC3 report noted a record $9.3B in crypto fraud losses in 2024, a 66% increase from 2023.

4. MoonPay recently expanded into all 50 U.S. states and secured a BitLicense from New York regulators.

5. The case underscores growing crypto fraud risks despite increasing institutional adoption.