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Pig-Butchering's Share Has Doubled

Emerging trend · InvestmentJuly 2026

What's happening

The FBI's Operation Level Up notified almost 10,000 victims — 77% of whom still didn't know they were being scammed.

The name comes from the scammers themselves. "Shā zhū pán" — the pig-butchering playbook — is criminal slang that emerged from Chinese fraud rings in the mid-2010s: befriend the victim, "fatten" them for weeks with warmth and small wins, then slaughter the account all at once. What began as a regional con has industrialized into compound-scale operations across Southeast Asia generating tens of billions in annual losses.

In Scamwise data, romance scams that turn into pig-butchering style investment scams continue to grow in total share of scam cases. Scamwise has seen all stages of the scam anatomy from a friendly "wrong number" text ("Hi, is this Amanda from the golf club?"), the pivot to WhatsApp or Telegram, and finally the polished fake trading platform showing gains that can never be withdrawn.

The official government numbers match the data on Scamwise where pig-butchering tactics uses in romance and investment scams are often the most devastating in both the financial losses and the emotional aftermath. Recently, the FBI's Operation Level Up notified almost 10,000 victims, 77% of whom still didn't know they were being scammed and 2026 has brought the largest international crackdowns on overseas scam compounds to date.

As we watch this trend, we're keeping an eye on AI-enhanced personas: scam operations increasingly use generated photos and deepfake audio or video calls to "prove" the friend is real, dismantling the classic advice to just ask for a video chat.

A stranger who wants to teach you to invest is a stranger worth checking twice.

Second channel checks

When you want to be sure

  1. 1

    Don't correct wrong numbers.

    Any reply — even "wrong number" — confirms a live target. Delete and block or check out Savi's apps for automatic filtering.

  2. 2

    Verify any investment platform independently.

    Check the site on Scamwise or use FINRA's BrokerCheck and search the SEC's investor alerts. Beyond phony investment websites, scammers like to use fake investment or broker apps. Remember that any app that isn't in an official app store with a history of positive reviews and endorsements across the web or that you have to sideload should be an immediate red flag.

  3. 3

    Break the isolation — tell one real person.

    Scammers insist on secrecy and urgency. Pig-butchering tactics thrive in isolation as victims are warned not to share any details. Break the spell by trying to describe the "opportunity" out loud to a family member, friend, advisor, or even Scamwise to get a helpful second opinion.