Investment fraud in UK soared to more than £220m lost last year, trade body says

Scams involving gold, cryptocurrencies and wine rise as criminals use AI to increasingly carry out larger-scale fraudIncreasingly elaborate investment scams involving gold, cryptocurrencies and wine have soared in the past year with more than £220m lost to the fraud, according to a report. UK banks reported almost 15,000 investment scams in 2025 as criminals use artificial intelligence to dupe people out of their money.