A man and an exchange office in Limassol lost €100,000 in a cryptocurrency transaction

Police in Limassol are investigating a major fraud case in which a 31-year-old man and a local exchange office were the victims. The victim had been searching online for ways to convert cash into digital assets, after which an unknown person contacted him and recommended a specific exchange office. When the complainant went there and handed over €100,000, the money never reached his crypto wallet. It was later revealed that the day before, the fraudster had contacted the exchange office owner posing as an intermediary, warned them about the visit of his “clients” and instructed them to transfer cryptocurrency immediately after receiving the cash to his own wallet, which the company employee did.
This case became part of a whole wave of similar crimes: on the same day, police recorded two more complaints from victims of crypto fraud. A 72-year-old resident of Nicosia lost around €48,500, while a 39-year-old resident of Paphos lost about €26,400 — in both cases, the victims were lured to fake investment platforms and their computers were accessed remotely. In light of the growing number of incidents, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is urging extreme caution, as criminals are actively using social media and messaging apps, posing as intermediaries or official services.