U.S. Sanctions Philippines Company Connected to $200M Crypto Fraud
The U.S. Treasury Department has taken action against a business in the Philippines, Funnull Innovation, and its CEO, Liu Lizhi, for their involvement in cryptocurrency scams. On May 29, 2025, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) revealed that Funnull is associated with several fraudulent websites identified by the FBI, causing losses exceeding $200 million.
Funnull executes its scams by acquiring multiple IP addresses from major tech firms and then selling them to criminals. These addresses are used to create deceptive websites resembling legitimate investment platforms. The Treasury Department has emphasized that the company lures individuals into its schemes by presenting these sites as genuine, leading investors to unknowingly transfer their cryptocurrency to fraudulent entities.
In 2024, Funnull altered coding tools used by web developers, redirecting visitors from authentic sites to fake platforms or online gaming pages. This tactic enables scammers to swiftly change their site addresses and avoid detection, complicating law enforcement efforts to shut down these operations.
Liu Lizhi, the Chinese national behind Funnull, has been sanctioned by OFAC and added to the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) list. This designation freezes any U.S.-based assets he holds and prohibits Americans from engaging in financial transactions with him or Funnull. OFAC has also targeted two cryptocurrency wallets associated with Funnull, identified by blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis as conduits for scam proceeds.
Chainalysis further uncovered Funnull’s involvement in a network named “Triad Nexus,” comprising over 200,000 fraudulent website domains linked to various scams, such as deceptive trading applications that defraud unsuspecting victims.
This enforcement action forms part of a broader campaign to dismantle cybercriminal operations facilitating crypto scams, aiming to disrupt their activities and safeguard individuals from significant financial losses.
