Promised high returns, no risk? Treat it as a scam: how to spot one

Five warning signs

1. Returns that sound too good. For example, “3% a day” adds up to about 1,095% a year. Another classic: “10 times your money in 30 days, guaranteed”.
2. A promise that you won’t lose. Every real investment carries risk, and no one can guarantee future returns.
3. Pressure to invest now. They say the chance won’t last and push you to send money right away.
4. Fees before you can withdraw. You’re told to pay a “tax”, a “fee” or a “verification fee”, or to deposit more to “unlock” a withdrawal.
5. Someone claiming to be official. They message you privately, say they’re from an exchange or one of its partners, and steer you to invest or move your crypto.

The four most common tricks

• The “expert” who tells you what to buy: someone posing as a trading pro pulls you into a group and promises high returns if you buy what they buy. Then they steer you to put money into a platform or “project” of their choosing.
• Arbitrage, interest or mining “projects”: they get you to put money into their “project” and promise steady, high daily payouts.
• Romance or friendship turned investment (often called pig butchering): someone you met online builds trust, then gets you to “invest”. You make a little first; when you try to withdraw, they ask for a “tax” or a “fee”.
• Ponzi schemes: they use investment clubs or token sales to promise high returns, but pay earlier investors with money from newer ones.

Check before you send anything

• Ask where the returns come from. If the answer is vague, or it’s all promises and pressure, walk away.
• Binance and OKX won’t message you privately to ask for money or crypto. Never share your screen with someone like this, and never give anyone your recovery phrase or private key.
• Check any account that claims to be official with the exchange’s verification tool: see how to check official Binance channels and how to check official OKX channels.
• If they send you to a website or app to invest, compare its address with the official ones above.

Already sent money? Do these four things first

1. Stop paying: don’t send anything more, whether they call it a tax, a fee or an unlock charge.
2. Keep the evidence: screenshots of the chats, transaction records (transaction hashes), the scammer’s accounts and web addresses.
3. Tell the exchange: if the money left your exchange account, contact the exchange only through the help centre on its official site. Send the scammer’s address and your transaction records.
4. Report it to the police: the sooner you report it, the better the chance of freezing money that hasn’t moved yet.