Retired journalist and advisor on financial crime Ian Timberlake.
Last week, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) released its latest report on transnational scam networks, which found that victims from East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand had been defrauded of up to $114.1 billion in 2025.
The report draws on official data, case records, financial intelligence, and field research in describing an increasingly sophisticated criminal ecosystem dominated by Chinese-origin transnational organized crime groups.
It also covers the trafficking of physical goods and services, including wildlife, along with cyber-enabled fraud, criminal infrastructure, and platform-based financial settlements.
Ian Timberlake, a retired journalist who acts as a part-time adviser on anti-money laundering and financial crime, attended the launch of the 256-page UNODC report in Bangkok and the expert discussions that followed.
