Over 2 in 3 APAC adults say financial scams are on the rise: LSEG

Australians are most concerned about scams whilst the Chinese are likeliest to lose money.

Over 2 in 3 (64%) of adults in APAC believe that financial scams are on the rise, with 2 in 5 consumers having encountered at least one form of AI-generated fraude in the past 12 months, according to a survey by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).

In a survey of 21,000 consumers globally, of which 7,000 consumers across five Asia Pacific markets—Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, China, and Singapore—almost 1 in 4 (23%) said that they have been personally targeted by a financial scam in the past two years.

Australian consumers were the most concerned about the rising scams, with 81% indicating such, followed by Hong Kong (76%) and Japan (74%). They are far higher than in China (39%) and Singapore (58%).

Perceived threat does not always translate to financial loss, LSEG noted. For example, China has the highest conversion rate amongst the five markets. Over 1 in 2 (56%) targeted by scams will lose money.

In comparison, just 1 in 3 (33%) of those targeted by scams in Japan will lose money. This suggests that awareness and vigilance levels vary significantly across markets.

Every 1 in 2 Chinese consumers surveyed (50%) said that they have encountered at least one form of AI-generated fraud in the past 12 months. A third from Hong Kong (36%) also indicated the same.

Of the 1,000 Singaporeans surveyed, 23% have been personally targeted by a scam, and 11% have lost money personally.

However, Singapore was the second most susceptible to losing money to a financial scam amongst the five markets, at 49% of those targeted losing money, LSEG said.