NatWest imposes 1-day and 30-day limits on payments from customer accounts to cryptocurrency exchanges, aiming to reduce exposure to cryptocurrency fraud.
The UK lender said it would not allow customers to transfer more than £1,000 ($1,213) per day or more than £5,000 ($6,066) in a month to the exchange.
NatWest claimed that even legitimate cryptocurrency exchanges are being used as stepping stones to make investments in digital currencies.
The bank said men over the age of 35 were most likely to make risky investments, and the cost of living crisis could exacerbate the problem.
“You should always have sole control of your cryptocurrency wallet and no one else should be able to access it. It’s possible,” warned NatWest’s head of fraud prevention, Stuart Skinner.
“The number of frauds using cryptocurrency exchanges is increasing and we are taking action to protect our customers.”
The bank claimed UK consumers lost £329m to such scams last year.
They helped investment fraud become the biggest money maker for cybercriminals, making over $3.3 billion in 2022, according to FBI statistics.
Read more about crypto scams: Santander warns about 87% spike in celebrity crypto scams.
The news came as the FBI warned consumers yesterday of a surge in cryptocurrency investment scams.
“Schemes are socially designed and credit-enabling, and typically begin with romance and credit fraud and progress to cryptocurrency investment fraud,” the public service announcement explained.
“Once trust is established with victims, criminals bring up the topic of cryptocurrencies and have the expertise, or the expertise, to help potential investors achieve financial success. Criminals convince victims to invest in cryptocurrencies using fraudulent websites and apps controlled by criminals.”
In these so-called “pig slaughter” scams, scammers guide victims through the investment process and present false returns that encourage more investment. In many cases, when victims try to cash out, they are told to pay additional taxes and fees, which are also paid to the scammers.
