Secret Service seizes $400M in crypto, amassing one of the world’s largest cold wallets

The U.S. Secret Service has quietly accumulated nearly $400 million in digital assets over the past decade, building one of the largest known crypto cold wallets in the world. According to a Bloomberg report on Saturday, citing people familiar with the matter, the stash comes from a string of investigations into scams and fraud schemes that preyed on unsuspecting victims.

At the heart of this effort is the agency’s Global Investigative Operations Center (GIOC), which leverages blockchain analysis, domain tracking, and even VPN slip-ups to follow digital money trails. Jamie Lam, an investigative analyst with the agency, reportedly told law enforcement officials in Bermuda last month that the strategy combines open-source intelligence tools with patience.

A cold wallet built from justice

The crypto stockpile sits largely in a single cold-storage wallet, acquired bit by bit through seizures in cases such as romance-investment scams and sextortion rackets.

In one common scam, victims were lured into fake crypto investment platforms with promises of quick profits. At first, targets might even see returns to build trust — until the platform vanishes, taking all deposits with it.

“That’s how they do it,” Lam explained. “They’ll send you a photo of a really good-looking guy or girl. But it’s probably some old guy in Russia.”

The GIOC team has successfully tracked scammers by connecting payment trails to wallets, analyzing VPN errors that briefly revealed real IP addresses, and combing through domain records.

Training the world to fight crypto crime

Leading the Secret Service’s crypto operations is Kali Smith, who heads a team that has trained officials in over 60 countries to uncover financial crimes online. Many of these jurisdictions had previously overlooked how scams operated under their watch.

“Sometimes after just a week-long training, they can be like, ‘Wow, we didn’t even realize that this is occurring in our country,’” Smith noted.

One investigation involved an Idaho teenager who was extorted after sending a private photo online. Analysts followed the money trail to a Nigerian passport-holder responsible for more than $4.1 million in transactions, who was eventually arrested by British police in Guildford.

Crypto scams on the rise

Crypto scams now account for the largest share of U.S. internet crime losses. In 2024 alone, Americans lost $9.3 billion to crypto fraud, more than half of all internet crime losses that year, according to FBI data.

In the first half of 2025, scams, hacks, and exploits have already accounted for more than $2.47 billion in losses, signaling the threat is far from over.

Recovering stolen funds

Stolen funds are not always lost forever. Industry cooperation has been key, with platforms like Coinbase and Tether helping trace transactions and freeze wallets. Notably, the Secret Service recovered $225 million in USDT tied to romance scams — one of the largest such recoveries on record.

As the Secret Service continues to unmask fraudsters and expand its training programs worldwide, its massive crypto cold wallet stands as a testament to the growing fight against digital crime — and a reminder that even in the pseudonymous world of blockchain, someone is watching.