Bank Manager Gut Feeling Helps Her Thwart Crypto Scammers

Tim Alper
Last updated: | 1 min read

The South Korean commercial bank Nonghyup Bank (NH) has claimed that a member of its staff’s quick thinking helped prevent a major instance of crypto fraud.

Source: iStock/AzriSuratmin

Per the media outlet News1, the bank explained that Oh Ji-jung (40), a manager of an NH branch in the sub-tropical island province of Jeju, had a “strange feeling” about a transaction requested by one of her customers – and decided to step in.

The customer, an unnamed female, had remitted around USD 7,000 to an (also unnamed) crypto-related firm to buy cryptoassets, but had received neither tokens nor any reply from the vendor.

The sharp-witted Oh intervened, contacting the company in case and claiming that this was an instance of “suspected fraud.” She spoke to the company in question, “hinting” that the customer was likely to take the matter up with the police.

Apparently spooked by the call, the company immediately reimbursed the customer with the full USD 7,000.

And it turned out, Oh instincts were spot on: It later transpired that the company in question was being investigated by police officers in another part of the country for allegedly committing fraud by collecting fiat payments from “a number of investors” besides the female customer in question.

Oh was on hand to provide reporters with a valuable warning on the danger of investing in the modern world, explaining via the Jemin Ilbo:

“Recently, there have been an increasingly large number of cases whereby funds are transferred to bank accounts under different names. Companies are collecting funds from a large number of investors promising them quick, high and easy returns on their money.”

NH is one of three domestic banks that currently provide real name, social security number-authenticated banking services to crypto exchanges. The company has also explored a number of potential crypto-related business areas, including crypto custody-related services.
____
Learn more:
Crypto Scammers Now Stalking Dating Apps Like Tinder for Prey
SEC Readies to Settle with BitConnect Promoters – Judge

Despite the Crackdown, Crypto Fraudsters Still Run Amok in China
Ledger Hack Saga Continues: Scammers ‘Gifting’ Fake Hardware Wallets