China’s top prosecuting body warns of rising fraud as scammers exploit dating platforms and matchmaking gaps across the country.
One man posed as a wealthy entrepreneur to lure victims into fake investments. Another arranged sham marriages using trafficked foreign women. A third pretended to be single, built a romantic relationship online, then swindled her partner out of 3 million yuan ($400,000).
Together, they’re part of a wave of scams sweeping China’s matchmaking sector — a booming industry now under scrutiny, after more than 1,500 people were prosecuted for related crimes in the past year.
Warning of a sharp rise in fraud, China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate — the country’s top prosecuting body — has highlighted a series of recent cases involving sham agencies, fabricated identities, and dating platforms used to lure victims into complex schemes.
Despite a record-low marriage rate — just 6.1 million registrations in 2024, the lowest in 44 years — demand for matchmaking has surged among China’s singles. Data shows the sector has grown steadily over the past decade, with more than 46,500 new companies set up last year alone.
While traditional sites like Baihe and Zhenai dominate the market, dating apps such as Momo and Tantan have rapidly expanded in the past decade. According to market research firm iiMedia Research, the industry’s market size has more than tripled since 2014, reaching 9.38 billion yuan ($1.2 billion) in 2023.
According to the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, matchmaking agencies in China require no prior registration review, and there are no mandatory qualifications for matchmakers — a regulatory gap that has enabled scams to flourish. Some agencies falsely claim to be officially certified or employ “professional matchmakers” to lure in clients.
In one case, a matchmaker surnamed Wang introduced married women to clients, deceiving six victims into paying nearly 900,000 yuan in matchmaking and bride prices. Another offender, surnamed Zhang, recruited women working in karaoke and bars as “shills,” ultimately defrauding 128 people of more than 2.5 million yuan.
The lack of standardized identity checks across matchmaking services has further enabled fraud. In one case, a woman surnamed Xu concealed her marital status and children, developed a romantic relationship through a dating site, and fabricated investment deals and family emergencies to swindle 3 million yuan.
Criminal gangs have also exploited these loopholes. In one highlighted case, a 32-member ring used fake identities on multiple matchmaking platforms, posed as wealthy individuals, and conned victims of over 16 million yuan through fake investment schemes.
According to the top prosecution body, illegal matchmaking agencies have even falsified visas under the guise of business or tourism, and, in some cases, smuggled individuals across borders, raising serious concerns about trafficking and fraud.
In one case, a perpetrator surnamed Wan trafficked 46 foreign women and arranged illegal border crossings. Despite knowing some were already in de facto marriages, Wan repeatedly married them off to single men in different cities and towns, earning 1.33 million yuan.
Additional reporting: Lu Zhiyi; editor: Apurva.
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