Chinese National Admits Role in $7.4B Bitcoin Fraud at UK Court

A high-profile crypto fraud case has reached a turning point in the United Kingdom, where a Chinese woman admitted guilt in connection with a multi-billion-dollar Bitcoin scheme.

Good to Know

• The fraud involved more than 128,000 victims in China between 2014 and 2017.
• Police seized 61,000 BTC in 2018, the largest crypto seizure ever made by UK authorities.
• Two defendants, Zhimin Qian and Hok Seng Ling, now await sentencing in November.

Zhimin Qian, aged 47, stood before a UK court and pleaded guilty to two charges after investigators linked her to an enormous $7.4 billion Bitcoin fraud. The case traces back to China, where authorities say Qian defrauded thousands of people before fleeing abroad.

Using false documents, she entered the United Kingdom and tried to disguise the illicit funds through real estate transactions. Jian Wen, a UK citizen, assisted her in these efforts. Wen was jailed last year and received a sentence of six years and eight months.

The Metropolitan Police struck a major blow against Qian in 2018 when they confiscated 61,000 Bitcoin, a seizure valued as the largest of its kind at the time. Investigators said the coins represented proceeds from the extensive fraud, which ran from 2014 to 2017.

Qian was eventually located and arrested in April 2024 along with Derbyshire resident Hok Seng Ling, aged 46. Ling pleaded guilty to one offense during the same court process this week.

Detective Sergeant Isabella Grotto, who coordinated the investigation, praised the effort that stretched across borders.

“This outcome marks the result of years of painstaking work. When our team located Zhimin Qian, she had been evading justice for five years, and her arrest triggered a complex investigation requiring evidence from multiple jurisdictions and the careful review of thousands of documents.”

UK authorities worked closely with Chinese law enforcement to track Qian’s movements and to assemble the evidence that led to charges. The sentencing of both Qian and Ling is scheduled for November, where the court is expected to hand down punishments connected to one of the largest crypto frauds ever prosecuted in Europe.