The authorities seized a record US$15 billion in BTC and sanctioned major entities linked to cross-border crypto scams.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) jointly announced a major enforcement action targeting a vast Southeast Asian crypto scam network responsible for billions in illicit activity.
The operation includes the forfeiture of US$15 billion in BTC, the largest in history, and sanctions against more than 140 individuals and entities associated with the Prince Group Transnational Criminal Organisation (TCO).
The action, coordinated through OFAC, FinCEN, and the UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), designates the Prince Group, its founder Chen Zhi, and affiliates across Cambodia, Laos, and Palau for their roles in large-scale ‘pig butchering’ scams, crypto mining through Warp Data Technology, and money laundering via shell companies.
The UK has also sanctioned Byex Exchange, a platform linked to the Prince Group and Jin Bei Group Co. Ltd., both central to the network’s operations.
Authorities revealed that Huione Group, which processed over US$98 billion in total cryptocurrency inflows over the past four and a half years, laundered at least US$4 billion in illicit crypto proceeds, including funds from North Korean cyberattacks and online investment scams. Following its designation under Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act, Huione has been formally cut off from the US financial system.
The DOJ has also unsealed an indictment against Chen Zhi, charging him with fraud, money laundering, and racketeering. Investigations traced over 127,000 BTC to addresses directly controlled by Chen, along with mining operations in Laos that channelled funds through multiple fraudulent investment schemes.
The investigation linked the network to forced labour, extortion, and human trafficking tied to compounds operated by Jin Bei Group in Cambodia. Evidence shows that more than US$18 million was stolen from US victims alone in previous scams traced to these facilities.
The coordinated enforcement represents the largest-ever joint crypto crime operation between the United States and the United Kingdom, signalling a new phase of global cooperation in tackling financial crimes within decentralised systems.
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