Cambodia has emerged as a hub for crime syndicates running fake romantic relationship and cryptocurrency investment schemes in which scammers -- some willing, others trafficked -- defraud internet users around the world.

But under pressure from several countries including the United States, Britain and China, Cambodian authorities say they are cracking down on the industry.

Prince Group's China-born founder Chen Zhi was extradited by Phnom Penh to China in January, after his Cambodian conglomerate was sanctioned by the US and UK governments months earlier over its alleged involvement in cyberscams.

Tuesday's sanctions target Hu Xiaowei, said to be the second-in-command of the Prince Group, according to a US Treasury statement.

The new sanctions also target Hu's Hong Kong-based associates, who are accused of running a "web of companies" tied to the scams, the statement said.

These include 11 companies based in the United Kingdom.

Other individuals targeted in the new sanctions include two investors in Prince Group scam centers; Dai An, an alleged high-level leader in the group; and others alleged to be involved in laundering money for the group.

A Thailand-based hotel company, White Horse Hotel Management Group, was also targeted in the latest US sanctions action.

Washington estimates that American citizens lost at least $10 billion in 2024 to Southeast Asia-based scam operations, the US Treasury said.

The schemes use a variety of techniques, but one of the most common and lucrative is to trick targets into pouring money into a combination of real and fake digital assets.