20-07-2025
UAE: Crypto scam victims on average lost nearly Dh300,000 each
Approximately $80,000 (Dh293,600) was stolen from each crypto victim of the UAE, the highest globally, during the first half of 2025, according to an analysis by Chainalysis.
This has prompted analysts to call for using best techniques to store cryptocurrencies efficiently.
According to EC-Council University, investors in UAE and around the world should choose the right wallet as a first step to safeguard their crypto. In addition, they are advised that hardware wallets are the best option, while a paper wallet is an offline solution for securely storing cryptocurrency. It involves generating a document that contains the investor's public and private keys.
They also advised strengthening passwords, implementing two-factor authentication, being aware of phishing scams, keeping software updated, safeguarding private keys, backing up the wallet, diversifying the storage and securing the network, among others.
According to a global blockchain analytics company's data, victims in the USA came second, followed by victims in Chile, India, Lithuania, Japan, Iran, Israel, Norway and Germany.
The UAE has one of the highest crypto adoptions in the world.
Nearly 30 per cent of UAE residents own cryptocurrency, followed by Vietnam, the US, Iran, the Philippines, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Ukraine, according to data published by Voronoi, quoting Trip-A.
With a score of 45.7 (regarding interest of residents in crypto), the UAE has been ranked third globally after Singapore (50.2) and Switzerland (46.9), said Henley and Partners.
'The UAE stands out as a leading jurisdiction for crypto investors, with its strong public adoption score evidencing a vibrant interest in the crypto ecosystem. The Middle Eastern powerhouse also offers favourable tax policies and a high level of economic stability,' it said.
Andrew Amoils, head of research at New World Wealth, said Dubai is home to 6,500 technology millionaires as of June 2024, mainly in fintech, crypto and software development.
This comes as Bitcoin hit an all-time high of over $120,000 earlier this week. On Sunday morning, it was trading at $117,860, while total market capitalisation stood at $3.87 trillion.
Globally, Chainalysis said over $2.17 billion was stolen from cryptocurrency services so far in 2025, higher than the entirety of 2024. North Korea's $1.5 billion hack of ByBit, the largest single hack in crypto history, accounted for the majority of service losses.
Regionally, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), and Central & Southern Asia and Oceania (CSAO) regions saw the most rapid increase in growth in victim totals.
North America dominated both bitcoin and altcoin theft, ranking first in both categories. This concentration likely reflects the region's high crypto adoption rates and the operation of threat actors capable of targeting large individual holdings. Europe leads the world in ether and stablecoin theft, potentially indicating some combination of either adoption rates for these assets or an attacker's preference for more liquid, easily transferable assets.
Asia Pacific ranked second in terms of total Bitcoin stolen and third in terms of stolen Ethereum, whereas CSAO ranked second in terms of stolen altcoin and stolen stablecoin value. Fairly consistently, Sub-Saharan Africa ranked the lowest in terms of value stolen (second to last in terms of compromised BTC), which is most likely indicative of lower wealth levels in this region and not necessarily a signal of lower victimisation rates among crypto users.
