On January 7, Chinese language state tv broadcast dramatic footage: a hooded, handcuffed man being escorted off a aircraft in Beijing. The prisoner was Chen Zhi, the 38-year-old founding father of Cambodia’s Prince Holding Group, accused of operating one in every of Asia’s largest rip-off empires.
Cambodia had arrested Chen the day earlier than and extradited him to China, ending years of hypothesis about whether or not the well-connected tycoon would ever face justice. However as Chen’s downfall dominates headlines, one other thriller lingers: What actually occurred to his $15 billion in Bitcoin?
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The File Seizure
When US prosecutors introduced in October 2025 that they’d seized 127,271 Bitcoin from Chen, they known as it a “record” cryptocurrency forfeiture. The US and UK coordinated sanctions towards 146 people and entities linked to Prince Group—the biggest enforcement motion concentrating on cryptocurrency-enabled fraud. The message appeared clear: American justice had caught a crypto prison.
However in keeping with Beijing, the actual story started 5 years earlier.
Chinese language state tv broadcast Chen Zhi being escorted off a aircraft in Beijing. Supply: Captured from CCTV footage
The 2020 Hack
In late December 2020, Chen’s Bitcoin mining pool suffered a devastating cyberattack. Greater than 127,000 Bitcoin—then price round $4 billion—vanished.
Chen was determined. In keeping with Chinese language state media, he posted over 1,500 messages providing large bounties for the return of his funds. Nothing got here again.
Then got here October 2025. The US Justice Division unsealed an indictment towards Chen and introduced the seizure of 127,271 Bitcoin. The quantity was almost similar to what Chen had misplaced in 2020.
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“Not How Normal Hackers Behave”
In November 2025, China’s Nationwide Laptop Virus Emergency Response Middle (CVERC) launched a technical report on the incident. Their key discovering: the stolen Bitcoin remained utterly dormant for almost 4 years earlier than transferring to new addresses in mid-2024.
“This behavior is obviously inconsistent with typical hackers who urgently seek to cash out,” the report acknowledged. “The operational pattern is more consistent with a state-level hacker organization.”
The blockchain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence had tagged the final-destination wallets as belonging to the US authorities.
Du Guodong, a companion at Beijing Haotian Regulation Agency, advised a Chinese language media outlet that the US indictment didn’t disclose how authorities obtained Chen’s non-public keys. “This suggests the US government may have already stolen Chen’s Bitcoin through hacking techniques as early as 2020,” he stated.
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Washington’s Silence
The Justice Division has not addressed China’s allegations. The DOJ indictment filed within the Jap District of New York particulars Chen’s alleged crimes extensively—rip-off compounds, pressured labor, cash laundering—however says nothing about how investigators accessed his cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin requires non-public keys to maneuver. Both Chen surrendered his keys, somebody near him did, or they had been obtained via different means. Chen has employed Boies Schiller Flexner to problem the seizure.
“Black Eating Black”
Chinese language state media frames the case in stark phrases. Beijing Every day described the seizure as “黑吃黑 (black consuming black)“—criminals preying on different criminals.
“The US seized Chen Zhi’s Bitcoin without any mention of returning funds to global victims,” the paper wrote. “Behind the mask of ‘global police,’ they simply want to take a cut for themselves.”
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The Forgotten Victims
Misplaced within the US-China sparring are 1000’s of rip-off victims. Chen’s Prince Group allegedly ran at the least 10 forced-labor compounds in Cambodia, coercing trafficked staff into “pig-butchering” romance scams. The Treasury Division estimates Southeast Asian rip-off operations stole at the least $10 billion from American victims final 12 months.
The seized $15 billion may, in idea, compensate many victims. However Washington has introduced no restitution plan.
Cambodia revoked Chen’s citizenship in December 2025. His Prince Financial institution has been ordered into liquidation. The empire collapsed in months.
Whether or not China’s accusations show correct might by no means be established. However the questions will linger: about state-sponsored hacking, crypto safety, and who controls the foundations within the digital monetary system.
Fifteen billion {dollars} sits traceable on the blockchain. The accused rip-off boss is behind bars. However the cash stays with a authorities that, in keeping with its rival, might have stolen it too.
