Chinese woman pleads guilty in the 'largest cryptocurrency seizure in the world' case

After a seven-year investigation by UK police, assisted by Chinese law enforcement, a Chinese woman pleaded guilty to orchestrating a multibillion-dollar bitcoin (BTC) scheme.

The Metropolitan Police said that Zhimin Qian (47), also known as Yadi Zhang, pleaded guilty to fraudulently acquiring and possessing cryptocurrency. The police launched their investigation in 2018, which resulted in the seizure of 61,000 BTC, now worth $6.95 billion, which is "believed to be the single largest cryptocurrency seizure in the world."

According to law enforcement, between 2014–2017 Qian defrauded 128,000 victims in China by promising up to 300% returns from fake fintech, cryptoasset, and other projects, before leaving the country for the UK. In September 2018, she attempted to launder the proceeds by purchasing property. In this transaction, she was assisted by an accomplice, Jian Wen, who was sentenced to almost seven years in prison last year for her role in the criminal operation.

"My thoughts are with the thousands of victims defrauded in this scheme, and I hope today’s outcome acknowledges the harm Qian inflicted and reinforces the Met’s unwavering commitment to justice," Will Lyne, the Met’s Head of Economic and Cybercrime Command, was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, Robin Weyell, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said that the CPS will now "work to ensure, through criminal confiscation and civil proceedings, that the criminal assets remain beyond the fraudsters’ reach."

Victims of Qian have already been seeking to recover their money, and lawyers Thornhill Legal are claiming that this case "will test the boundaries of cross-border financial crime enforcement, cryptoasset recovery, and the judicial cooperation between China and the West in the digital currency era."

Some in the UK have suggested using the seized billions for public needs. In practice, when it's impossible to return proceeds of crime to victims, the UK usually allocates half of confiscated assets to the police and the other half to the Home Office.

"From the civil perspective, asset recovery and restitution are shared commitments under international conventions. Yet China emphasises government-led payouts and diplomacy to repatriate assets, while the UK relies on judicial process. Both face common obstacles: defining assets, proving ownership, conflicts of law, and the challenges of cross-border cooperation," Thornhill Legal said.