June 18, 2025
BANGKOK – Several observers agree that Prime Minister Hun Manet’s government is facing mounting domestic pressure amid a worsening economic climate, widening inequality, and a surge in illicit activity, particularly cybercrime and online scams.
International intelligence and reports suggest that the profits from these illegal enterprises are, in part or in large measure, connected to individuals close to the Cambodian political elite.
This is not mere speculation. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has released detailed findings on transnational organised crime, cybercrime, and online scam operations. Their research includes a map of global scam centres, offering a sobering picture of the scale and geography of such activity.
The map, compiled by UNODC, clearly identifies multiple scam hubs along the Thai-Cambodian border. Interestingly, contrary to widespread assumptions that Myanmar is the regional epicentre, Cambodia now appears as the leading hotspot for cyber fraud operations.
Among the most prominent locations marked on the map is Sihanoukville, cited by the UNODC as one of the largest scam centres in Cambodia. The report highlights significant foreign investment in the area, which has evolved into both a hideout and operational base for scam syndicates targeting victims worldwide, including in Thailand.
Poipet, a border town directly opposite Aranyaprathet in Thailand’s Sa Kaeo Province, has also become a strategic base for criminal networks seeking to infiltrate the Thai market.
Further south and inland, the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, Bavet, and Preah Sihanouk province are similarly highlighted, indicating that the scam industry is no longer confined to border zones. Instead, it has expanded into major cities, including the national capital, underscoring the scale and institutional entrenchment of cybercriminal activity within Cambodia.
These findings from the UNODC cast a spotlight not only on the country’s growing reputation as a cybercrime hub but also on the complex nexus of political power, economic desperation, and transnational crime now shaping Cambodia’s internal and external challenges.
One of the key concerns for the international community, major powers, and UNODC is the growing body of evidence pointing to clear financial links between Cambodia’s political elite and the country’s burgeoning scam industry, particularly the so-called “scam centres” operating under the guise of legitimate businesses.
A notable example is the LYP Group, which holds concessions in Cambodia’s Koh Kong Special Economic Zone. Its subsidiaries include Koh Kong International Resort Club Co., Ltd., and Export-Import Co., Ltd. The group has been sanctioned and blacklisted by the United States for its alleged involvement in corruption, human trafficking, forced labour, and online fraud.
In a more politically sensitive case, a nephew of former Prime Minister Hun Sen has been implicated in large-scale online scam operations, including the embezzlement of over US$49 billion in digital assets since 2021. He has also been linked to Huione Group, a major conglomerate accused of conducting illicit financial transactions, including money laundering and cyber theft, across the region.
The Huione Group has since been sanctioned by the United States and other Western countries. It has been cut off from the US financial system, with all American firms banned from opening accounts or conducting any business with the group.
Pol Lt Gen Trirong Phiewphan, Commander of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB), revealed on June 16, 2025, that Thai cyber police have uncovered financial links between domestic online gambling and call-centre scam networks and an overseas company believed to be involved in money laundering activities.
The investigation found that funds scammed from Thai victims were systematically transferred through a chain of mule accounts, converted into digital assets, and ultimately laundered into cash and physical assets through a company.
Police have identified two possible scenarios involving Huione Group, a company based in Cambodia. First, the company operates in areas known to host scam syndicates along the border and within criminal strongholds, which raises the possibility that it is being used to convert digital currencies into cash. Authorities acknowledge that in the majority of past cases involving online gambling and call-centre scams, the financial trail has led back to this company.
Trirong stated that requests for information have been sent to various companies, most of which are based in Thailand and have shown differing levels of cooperation. In contrast, Huione Group has only provided partial responses in certain cases.
As for whether the company has engaged in any wrongdoing or played a role in criminal activities, this cannot yet be determined.
When asked whether Hun To, the nephew of Hun Sen, is involved with the company, Trirong said the matter remains under investigation and no conclusions can be drawn at this stage.
Huione Group is a major Cambodian financial conglomerate with documented links to the Hun family, Cambodia’s ruling political dynasty. A key executive within the group is Hun To, a cousin of Prime Minister Hun Manet and nephew of former Prime Minister and current Senate President Hun Sen.
Hun To serves as a board member of Huione Pay, one of the group’s core subsidiaries.
- Huione Group operates a network of companies providing a range of services, including:
- Huione Pay PLC – a payment service provider
- Huione Crypto – a digital currency exchange platform
- Haowang Guarantee – an online marketplace reportedly associated with illegal goods and services
The group has drawn intense scrutiny from international anti-money laundering agencies following widespread allegations of its involvement in global money laundering operations. These alleged activities are said to have been facilitated through its platforms, including Haowang Guarantee and Huione Crypto.
In March 2025, Cambodia’s central bank revoked Huione Pay’s operating license over regulatory violations. Meanwhile, the United States added Huione Group to its financial blacklist, labelling it a key laundering hub for transnational call-centre scam syndicates.
According to information published on the official website of the United States Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), on May 1, 2025, the agency officially blacklisted Huione Group, a major Cambodian financial conglomerate. The move followed an investigation that identified the group as a central hub in a global money laundering network linked to call-centre scams and transnational criminal syndicates. The total value of funds laundered was estimated at over US$4 billion (approximately 140 billion baht).
FinCEN’s investigation revealed that Huione Group served as a critical financial conduit for illicit proceeds from North Korean cyber heists and large-scale “pig butchering” scams—a form of call-centre fraud in which victims are deceived into investing before their money is siphoned away.
Between August 2021 and January 2025, the group was found to have laundered massive sums, including:
- US$37 million from North Korean cyberattacks
- US$36 million from digital asset investment scams
- US$300 million from other forms of cyber fraud
In response, the US government imposed a series of sweeping sanctions to disrupt the network:
All US financial institutions were prohibited from conducting any transactions with Huione Group.
Telegram removed thousands of channels linked to Huione Guarantee, a subsidiary platform accused of facilitating criminal activity.
The National Bank of Cambodia revoked Huione Pay’s banking licence in March 2025 for regulatory violations.
Additional analysis from Elliptic, a blockchain forensics company, described Huione Guarantee as “the largest criminal marketplace in history,” with more than US$27 billion in recorded transactions.
Scott Bessent, United States Deputy Treasury Secretary, stated, “Huione Group has positioned itself as a marketplace of choice for dangerous cyber actors, including North Korea and organised crime syndicates, who have stolen billions of dollars from ordinary Americans.”
This is an example that has led many concerned parties to call on the Thai government not to allow Cambodia to take the territorial dispute with Thailand to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) alone. Instead, they argue that the problems Cambodia has swept under the rug—now infamous across the globe—should also be brought before the United Nations. These include, in particular, the grey businesses, call-centre scams, scammer networks, and Cambodia’s role as a global hub for online fraud, which have caused suffering worldwide, while powerful figures in Cambodia continue to reap vast profits.