‘Operation Atlantic’: US and UK Team With Firms to Investigate, Stop Millions in Stolen Crypto

Crypto companies such as Coinbase and Binance, along with government agencies such as the United States Secret Service and the UK National Crime Agency (NCA), reported $45 million in stolen cryptocurrencies as part of fraud schemes, the parties announced on Thursday.

During the investigation, more than 20,000 fraud victims were identified, and $12 million was frozen pending refunds to victims.

“To take the phishing scam to the next level, our Global Intelligence team teamed up with several international law enforcement agencies and other partners to conduct a high-speed operation at the National Crime Agency headquarters in London,” wrote Coinbase.

“The goal was straightforward: to identify the victims, trace the stolen money, and disrupt the tools that make fraud acceptable – as quickly as possible,” it added.

The investigative sprint, called “Operation Atlantic,” it was first revealed last month and was hosted by the NCA at its headquarters in London. During the week of regular work there, the unions interfered “multiple fraud networks,” and will continue to analyze the intelligence gathered going forward. Other crypto companies, such as blockchain security company Chainalysis, crypto exchange Kraken, and stablecoin issuer Tether, have been included as partners.

“Operation Atlantic is a powerful example of what can be done when international organizations and private companies work together,” said National Crime Agency Director of Investigations Miles Bronfield, in a statement. “This strong action has resulted in the protection of thousands of people in the UK and overseas, stopping terrorist attacks and saving others from being lost.”

The enforcement campaign targeted crypto-investors who may have been affected by the legitimacy of the scam, where malicious actors attempt to obtain funds through false information or information that victims unquestioningly believe to be from trusted sources.

More than 120 areas used in the planning were identified during the week, according to the Secret Service.

“With traditional financial transactions, this type of collaboration, integrating multiple entities can take months,” Coinbase wrote in a statement this week. “With blockchain technology, we went from information to action within a week.”

The report comes just over a week after North Korea’s alleged hacking and about $285 million using Solana’s protocol, Drift. The transaction would represent a fraction of the money lost to crypto scams last year, a recent report from the FBI shows. that more than $11.4 billion was lost to crypto scams only in 2025.