Bitcoin Adviser Shares Story of Client Losing Retirement Funds to Romance Scam

Bitcoin Adviser Reveals How Client Lost Retirement Funds to Romance Scam

A Bitcoin investor tragically lost his retirement savings due to a deceptive “pig butchering” scam, despite multiple warnings from his advisory firm. This account was shared by Terence Michael, a Bitcoin wealth adviser.

Key Takeaways:

A Bitcoin investor lost significant retirement funds after ignoring multiple warnings and transferring money to a romance scammer.
Pig butchering scams exploit emotional vulnerabilities and often utilize fake identities, including AI-generated images, to entice victims.
These scams are escalating, with victims suffering losses totaling $5.5 billion in 2024, prompting increased actions from law enforcement.

The Client's Suspicious Transfer

Terence Michael, an author and adviser with The Bitcoin Adviser, recounted how an unnamed client transferred his Bitcoin assets to a scammer who approached him online, posing as a female trader. This woman claimed she could double his Bitcoin and gradually constructed what seemed to be a romantic relationship—an alarming tactic often used in pig butchering scams.

In a post on X, Michael detailed his frustration, stating that he had made “numerous phone calls” and sent an endless wave of text messages to stop the transfer, all to no avail. While enjoying dinner, he received a message confirming the devastating news that the funds were gone.

“My client was ensnared in a pig butchering scam,” Michael lamented. “And just last night, I received a heartbreaking text from him saying he had lost everything.”

Understanding the Pig Butchering Tactic

Unlike typical cyberattacks that utilize malware or direct wallet breaches, pig butchering scams rely heavily on emotional manipulation. Victims are often coaxed into willingly sending their assets after extensive interactions that mix investment advice with personal and romantic overtones.

Michael revealed that the client, who had recently gone through a divorce, didn’t just send Bitcoin. He also bought a plane ticket for the scammer, eagerly anticipating their in-person meeting. Once the transfer was complete, the attacker revealed that all the images used in their relationship had been fabricated using artificial intelligence.

This case underscores the alarming rise of pig butchering scams in the crypto sphere. In 2024, these scams alone reportedly siphoned off around $5.5 billion from victims, with approximately 200,000 cases filed, according to industry estimates.

In June, the US Department of Justice announced the seizure of over $225 million in cryptocurrency associated with pig butchering operations, demonstrating heightened law enforcement efforts against one of crypto’s most destructive fraud trends.

AI's Role in Driving Crypto Scams

The rise of artificial intelligence is also contributing to a new wave of crypto scams, leading to a staggering $4.6 billion in losses globally in 2024, as outlined in an Anti-Scam Research Report published on June 10, 2025.

Research conducted by Bitget, SlowMist, and Elliptic indicates that scammers are increasingly utilizing AI-generated deepfakes, fake video calls, and job offers with Trojan horses to deceive victims. At least 87 AI-driven scam rings were reported dismantled in the first quarter of 2025.

The report indicates that scams leveraging deepfake impersonation, social engineering tactics, and Ponzi schemes masquerading as DeFi or NFT projects are now at the forefront of the threat landscape. Criminal organizations are also employing cross-chain bridges and other obfuscation methods to launder stolen funds, complicating recovery efforts for victims.