‘Hustle kingdoms’ flourishing in West Africa

As the world becomes increasingly connected, digital fraud has evolved from a local problem into a global one. West Africa, particularly Ghana and Nigeria, is witnessing the rise of ‘hustle kingdoms’ – informal academies that train individuals to carry out digital scams. A Moneyweb analysis notes that the term originated from online scammers themselves and describes their training centres. Scams linked to ‘graduates’ include online romance fraud and business email compromise scams. These academies, once local training hubs, have evolved into global threats. They now export their skills worldwide, fuelling more persistent and widespread fraud. The US alone lost about $50bn in 2023 to online scams, many of which are linked to West African fraudsters. This figure only represents reported losses – many more crimes go unreported. Similar to the ‘Sakawa Boys’ (Ghanaian online scammers) and the ‘Yahoo Boys’ (Nigerian online scammers), ‘hustle kingdom’ fraudsters sometimes justify their actions as seeking restitution for past injustices, viewing themselves as descendants of victims of the slave trade, economic exploitation and colonialism. Online romance scams involve fraudsters creating fake online personas to establish emotional relationships with victims, deceiving them into sending money or personal information. Sextortion occurs when perpetrators coerce victims into providing sexually explicit content and then threaten to release it unless the victims meet financial or other demands.

Full Moneyweb analysis