I’m writing this post because something happened to me yesterday where I almost avoided a loss of nearly 300,000 PKR ($1050). If I had rushed even a little, that money probably wouldn’t be with me today.
I went to the Binance P2P section to sell my USDT. Like we all usually do, I was checking different ads to see which buyer was offering the best rate. During this, I saw an ad with a slightly higher rate than the rest. Honestly, that’s where I made my first mistake—I placed an order on that ad without thinking much.
After placing the order, I noticed that the payment time was set to one hour. I thought, fine, I’ll wait. The full hour passed, but no payment came. Then, just as the time was about to expire, he suddenly marked the order as “Paid.”
Now obviously, the system started showing the order as paid, but in reality, no money had arrived in my account. Shortly after, he sent a screenshot claiming he had made the payment. But when I checked my bank app, there was nothing there.
That’s when the real game started.
He asked for my WhatsApp number to “communicate easily.” I gave it to him, and he immediately called me. On the call, his tone completely changed. He started putting pressure on me—sometimes speaking harshly, sometimes trying to make me feel like I was in the wrong.
Then he said something very strange. He asked me to prove that my USDT was legitimate, implying that I might have obtained it through improper means. Obviously, this had nothing to do with the order, but his goal was to confuse me and make me release my crypto quickly.
At this point, I started feeling that something wasn’t right. Instead of falling for his words, I double-checked my payment. When I confirmed that no money had arrived, I decided not to take any risk.
Before taking further action, I even consulted ChatGPT and explained the entire situation. It immediately told me that this was a scam and that I should not release my USDT under any circumstances until the payment is fully confirmed. It also guided me on the proper way to file an appeal on Binance and what proofs to submit—like bank statements and screenshots—so the Binance team could review the case.
After that, I went to Binance and filed an appeal within the order. I was clear in my mind: until I see the money in my account, I will not release anything.
Surprisingly, within just a few minutes, the Binance team reviewed the case and canceled the order. That’s when it hit me—if I hadn’t appealed or if I had given in to the pressure, I might have lost my funds.
From this incident, I learned some very important lessons:
First, a higher rate is not always a benefit—often, it’s a trap.
Second, “Marked as Paid” does NOT mean the money has been received.
Third, never communicate outside Binance chat.
Fourth, if someone pressures you or rushes you, consider it a red flag immediately.
Fifth and most important: never release crypto until the money is actually in your account.
I’m sharing this so no one else falls into this kind of scam. If you do P2P trading, always remember these points.
Sometimes, a small moment of carelessness can turn into a huge loss.
$USDT
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