China Demands Return of 61,800 BTC Seized in UK Fraud Investigation

More than 61,800 Bitcoin and other assets are being targeted by Chinese prosecutors for confiscation in connection with a massive CNY 40.3 billion (roughly Rs. 57,226 crore) financial fraud case against Qian Zhimin, who is presently serving a prison sentence in the UK. As per the China-based financial news site Yicai, the Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People's Court stated on October 13 that it has accepted the case for recovery of assets gained from an illegal fund-raising scam run from 2014 to 2017.   

Chinese Court Opens Six-Month Window for Investors to Join Asset Recovery Proceedings 

The court officially took up the case on September 28 and has provided six months for all investors who have been affected by this fraud and any other concerned parties to take part in the confiscation process. The authorities are trying to seize the cryptocurrency, along with cash, jewelry, financial assets, and other assets that have been purchased with money earned through this scam. Over 102,000 investors have suffered losses worth more than CNY 19.9 billion (roughly Rs. 28,258 crore), as per the Chinese court's account of the case.

The seizure of the assets relates to money made by Tianjin Lantian Gerui Electronic Technology Company, a company owned by Qian, which offered investment schemes to people in multiple cities in China. According to reports, the said company, between April 2014 and August 2017, earned CNY 40.3 billion (roughly Rs. 57,226 crore) through unlicensed wealth management products that promised investors guaranteed principal repayments and unusually high returns. 

According to the court's announcement, the assets to be confiscated include over 61,800 BTC, over 72,700 Bitcoin Cash, and more than 3.6 million XRP, in addition to Bitcoin Gold, Bitcoin SV, Dogecoin, and other assets. 

The Chinese authorities have sought that recovery be made for illegal gains, properties procured using those gains, and profits made on the same assets, excepting the proceeds restored to investors in accordance with the law. The investors who opt not to participate in the current litigation would not lose their right to receive their share of the recovery.

Qian fled from China in July 2017 during the inquiry into the money-making scheme using a laptop with access to cryptocurrency wallets. Qian later went to Britain using a passport of St. Kitts and Nevis passport and called herself by the name of Yadi Zhang, where the investigators informed that she worked with associates to convert cryptocurrency into cash, property and other assets.

It all started in 2018 when British researchers started tracking the money on the basis of information obtained about criminal money. Devices and private keys, which give access to a lot of Bitcoin, were found by the Metropolitan Police during searches in October-November 2018 at a house in London and in a safe deposit box. Qian was then arrested in April 2024.