Gold bars increasingly used in scams in Japan

Gold bar scam losses amounted to ¥8.13 billion in Japan in the first half of 2026, already topping the ¥6.02 billion lost in all of last year, according to police data. The National Police Agency estimates that two-thirds of the latest losses, or roughly ¥5.3 billion, stemmed from scams in which fraudsters impersonated police officers. Scammers tell victims, “Your bank accounts have been used in crimes” or make similar claims, and then urge them to send gold bars to speed up investigations.

Investment scams conducted through social media in which victims were told to buy gold to put toward investments led to about ¥2 billion in losses.