UK Authorities Wraps Up One Of The Biggest Money Laundering Scheme

A Chinese national has pleaded guilty in the UK to what is believed to be one the biggest Bitcoin seizure in the world, worth more than $7 billion.

Following a years-long investigation that took the efforts of authorities across international borders, Zhimin Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, admitted to acquiring and holding criminal property—specifically 61,000 Bitcoin.

The case stems from an elaborate fraudulent investment scheme that Qian organized between 2014 and 2017, targeting 128,000 victims in China. Prosecutors revealed she converted illicit earnings into Bitcoin as a way to move and disguise the proceeds. In 2018, she fled China and entered the United Kingdom using false documentation.

Qian had help from a Chinese takeaway worker named Jian Wen, who was jailed for six years and eight months last year for her part in the criminal operation.

She settled in north London, where she bought a multi-million pound rented house. Outside of the UK, she brought two properties in Dubai worth more than £500,000, British authorities revealed.

When questioned, Wen claimed that she brought the property from an employer from China. However, the large discrepancy in the amount of Bitcoin and the lack of evidence of how she came by it indicated that she most likely brought the property with her stolen proceeds.

Legal Aftermath

The Metropolitan Police, assisted by economic crime specialists, conducted a seven-year investigation and ultimately seized the Bitcoin stash between 2018 and 2021—making it the largest crypto seizure ever in the UK, and one of the highest-value cases globally.

Jian Wen was previously convicted for her role in the operation, receiving a prison sentence of more than six years and being ordered to pay over $3 million in restitution.

Met Police head of economic and cybercrime Will Lyne highlighted the importance of the case, calling Qian’s guilty plea “the culmination of years of dedicated investigation” and noting that it ranks among the largest money laundering and cryptocurrency fraud cases in UK history.

Civil proceedings for the seized assets are now underway. However, legal experts caution that it will be difficult for defrauded Chinese citizens to prove proprietary claims and ultimately recover any of the lost funds.

Crown Prosecution Services Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor Robin Weyell stressed the growing role of digital assets in criminal activity, stating,

“Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are increasingly being used by organized criminals to disguise and transfer assets, so that fraudsters may enjoy the benefits of their criminal conduct.”

Weyell reaffirmed the CPS’s commitment to pursuing justice in such cases, pledging ongoing cooperation with law enforcement and investigatory agencies to combat cryptocurrency fraud.

Meanwhile, Zhimin Qian remains remanded in custody and will receive her sentence at a later date.