The UK Seeks to Keep $6.7B in Seized Bitcoin from Chinese Fraud Case

The UK government is attempting to retain over 61,000 Bitcoin , currently valued at around $6.7 billion, that was seized from a Chinese national convicted in a massive investment fraud ￰0￱ Takeaways: The UK is seeking to keep 61,000 BTC seized from a Chinese fraud case, now worth $6.7 ￰1￱ are pushing for compensation based on current Bitcoin value, not just original ￰2￱ battles and market volatility could delay resolution and impact the final ￰3￱ potential windfall stems from the conviction of Zhimin Qian and her Malaysian associate Seng Hok Ling, both of whom pleaded guilty to money laundering charges in London earlier this year. $6.7B in Bitcoin Seized at London Mansion in 2018 Fraud Probe The digital assets were first discovered in 2018 on devices seized at a luxury mansion in Hampstead, north London, during an investigation into suspicious property ￰4￱ the time, authorities were unaware they had stumbled upon what would become the UK’s largest-ever crypto seizure.

Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, had funneled stolen investor funds from China into Bitcoin before fleeing the country and settling in the UK under a false ￰5￱ documents reveal that Qian ran a fraudulent investment firm in China between 2014 and 2017, offering returns as high as 300%. The scheme reportedly defrauded over 128,000 individuals, many of whom are now seeking ￰6￱ for some victims argue that the Bitcoin should be returned at its current value, not merely the original sums invested, citing years of delay and the life savings many ￰7￱ officials are debating what to do with the massive haul, according to a report from the Financial ￰8￱ Treasury insiders have speculated the recovered crypto could reduce the fiscal burden in the upcoming Budget, but others caution that legal proceedings could stretch into ￰9￱ Office for Budget Responsibility does not account for asset seizures in its fiscal forecasts, and crypto holdings are not formally recognized as financial ￰10￱ next civil hearing is expected in January, with a High Court decision likely to be appealed.

Meanwhile, Qian and Ling await sentencing in ￰11￱ authorities face another challenge: how to liquidate such a large amount of Bitcoin without causing a price ￰12￱ crypto markets notoriously volatile, the final value of the seized funds could fluctuate dramatically before any resolution. Crypto-Related Physical Attacks Surge 169% in Six Months As reported, physical attacks targeting Bitcoin and crypto holders are rising at an alarming rate, according to new data tracked by CASA co-founder Jameson ￰13￱ late February, 35 new violent incidents have been reported globally, a 169% increase in just six and a half ￰14￱ uptick adds to an already troubling trend, as cryptocurrency markets continue their bullish ￰15￱ total, 48 attacks have occurred so far in 2025, marking a 33% increase over all of ￰16￱ alone has accounted for 14 of this year’s reported ￰17￱ of the most disturbing cases took place on September 6 in Cambridge, Canada, where a young man was abducted at gunpoint and forced to transfer funds into a cryptocurrency wallet.