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cftrace will never ask you to pay upfront via messaging apps or crypto. • We only contact you from verified @cftrace.com and @cf-trace.com email addresses. • We never demand a payment. Only a fully refundable recovery deposit may be required. • Your recovered assets stay under your name until released to your wallet. • Scammers impersonate recovery firms so book calls only through this website. • Need proof? Read our case results and verified client testimonials. • All meetings are recorded and case files are encrypted end-to-end.cftrace will never ask you to pay upfront via messaging apps or crypto. • We only contact you from verified @cftrace.com and @cf-trace.com email addresses. • We never demand a payment. Only a fully refundable recovery deposit may be required. • Your recovered assets stay under your name until released to your wallet. • Scammers impersonate recovery firms so book calls only through this website. • Need proof? Read our case results and verified client testimonials. • All meetings are recorded and case files are encrypted end-to-end.
All case files
Investment scam, off-ramp at exchange

14.2 BTC frozen at the receiving venue in 48 hours

frozen, then released
14.2 BTC
Jurisdiction
Exchange compliance pathway
Time to outcome
48 hours to freeze
Written and reviewed by the cftrace Recovery deskTRACE AI INVESTIGATIONS LTD · company no. 16828440Last reviewed 17 August 2026

What happened

The client transferred a single large amount after months of grooming through a messaging app. The receiving address was a hosted wallet, which meant the venue — not the fraudster — controlled the balance.

Route the funds took
Bitcoin → exchange deposit address

How it ran, step by step

  1. Hour 0

    Client called within two days of the transfer. Transaction hash confirmed on-chain during the call.

  2. Hour 6

    Receiving address attributed to a hosted deposit account at a major venue.

  3. Hour 20

    Compliance report filed with the venue's fraud desk and the relevant national reporting body.

  4. Hour 48

    Balance held pending court direction.

  5. Post-freeze

    Held until legal direction was obtained, then released to the client.

What the client paid

No upfront fee. Refundable compliance deposit only, returned on disbursement.

How the deposit works
What this case teaches

When funds land at a hosted wallet, the window is measured in hours. Reporting on the same day is worth more than any legal step taken later.

Other closed files

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£340,000 recovered · 23 days
Romance / relationship fraud
Bank disclosure order identified the account holder
78% of losses returned · 9 weeks
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