Chinese prosecutors have moved to confiscate more than 61,800 Bitcoin and other assets linked to a 40.38 billion yuan ($5.7 billion) investment fraud involving Qian Zhimin, who is currently serving a prison sentence in the UK.
Summary
- Chinese prosecutors have moved to confiscate more than 61,800 Bitcoin linked to a $5.7 billion investment fraud involving over 102,000 investors.
- The assets are tied to Qian Zhimin, who fled China in 2017 and was later sentenced to 11 years and eight months in prison in the UK.
- A Chinese court has given victims and other interested parties six months to participate in the confiscation proceedings.
- The UK High Court has ruled that Chinese law should govern victims’ ownership claims, although their entitlement to the seized Bitcoin remains unresolved.
According to Chinese financial outlet Yicai, the Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court announced on Oct. 13 that it had accepted an application to recover assets allegedly obtained through an illegal fundraising scheme operated between 2014 and 2017.
The court formally accepted the case on Sept. 28 and has opened a six-month period for affected investors and other interested parties to participate in the confiscation proceedings.
Prosecutors are pursuing the cryptocurrency alongside cash, jewelry, financial investments and other property believed to have been purchased using proceeds from the scheme.
More than 102,000 investors suffered combined losses exceeding 19.9 billion yuan, according to the Chinese court’s account of the case.
China targets Bitcoin and other assets tied to Qian Zhimin
The confiscation request concerns assets accumulated through Tianjin Lantian Gerui Electronic Technology, a company controlled by Qian that marketed investment products across several Chinese cities.
From April 2014 to August 2017, the company allegedly raised 40.378 billion yuan through unlicensed wealth management products that promised investors guaranteed principal repayments and unusually high returns.
Prosecutors said much of the money went toward repaying existing investors, financing fictitious investment projects and purchasing cryptocurrency, real estate, vehicles and luxury goods.
The funds were largely diverted from the business activities advertised to customers, leaving thousands of investors unable to recover their original investments.
According to the court’s announcement, the assets identified for confiscation include more than 61,800 BTC, over 72,700 Bitcoin Cash and more than 3.6 million XRP, alongside Bitcoin Gold, Bitcoin SV, Dogecoin and other holdings.
Chinese prosecutors have requested the recovery of illegal proceeds, property acquired using those proceeds and any income generated from the assets, subject to the amounts returned to investors under applicable law.
Investors who do not join the current proceedings will retain their eligibility to receive compensation from recovered assets.
How Qian Zhimin moved the Bitcoin to Britain
Qian fled China in July 2017 as authorities investigated the investment operation, carrying a computer containing access to cryptocurrency wallets.
She subsequently entered Britain using a St. Kitts and Nevis passport under the name Yadi Zhang, where investigators said she worked with associates to convert cryptocurrency into cash, property and other assets.
As crypto.news previously reported, Qian’s investment products promised returns of up to 300%, attracting investors who committed amounts ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of yuan.
British investigators began tracing the funds in 2018 after receiving intelligence concerning suspected criminal assets.
During searches of a London property and safe deposit box in October and November that year, Metropolitan Police recovered devices and private keys providing access to substantial Bitcoin holdings.
Qian was eventually arrested in April 2024, following an investigation that involved British and Chinese law enforcement authorities.
Her associate Jian Wen received a prison sentence of six years and eight months in 2024 for laundering cryptocurrency linked to the fraud.
Qian subsequently pleaded guilty to money laundering offenses in September 2025 and was sentenced to 11 years and eight months at Southwark Crown Court on Nov. 11.
UK court rules Chinese law applies to Bitcoin ownership claims
Meanwhile, the dispute over who is legally entitled to the seized Bitcoin remains before the British courts.
In an Oct. 12 judgment, High Court Justice Mark Turner ruled that Chinese law should govern the underlying ownership claims brought by victims seeking a share of the cryptocurrency.
The decision followed arguments over whether investors could establish ownership rights under English law through claims involving fraudulent investment contracts and the tracing of stolen funds.
The court found that the original investment transactions, alleged wrongdoing and purchases of Bitcoin took place in China, making Chinese law applicable to the underlying rights.
Roughly 16,000 victims have reportedly joined the British recovery proceedings, where claims over Bitcoin ownership remain unresolved.
Under Section 281 of Britain’s Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, applicants must establish a legal ownership interest in assets targeted for civil recovery.
The October ruling did not determine whether individual investors are entitled to the Bitcoin or whether their recovery should include gains from its subsequent appreciation.
Lawyers representing some victims are pursuing an appeal, while further hearings are expected to examine the application of Chinese law and the evidence supporting individual ownership claims.
British prosecutors are separately pursuing civil recovery of the seized assets under the Proceeds of Crime Act, with the High Court yet to decide the competing claims to the cryptocurrency.
