Prosecutors allege that Qian Zhimin, the alleged controller of Tianjin Lantian Gerui Electronic Technology, recruited associates to sell fake wealth management products nationwide from 2014 to 2017
Three whole years. And
no one cared about his illegal activities?
without financial regulatory approval, promising investors guaranteed returns, which raised some RMB 40.3 billion ($2.8 billion).
That was the case at the time. Now, this amount is much higher due to the rise in the exchange rates of the respective cryptocurrencies.
I know that many would likely be in support of such a move, as fraud, especially on digital assets, must be curbed in any way, shape, or form,
This is merely addressing the consequences. The root cause must be tackled: the naivety (or, more precisely, the low level of financial literacy) of investors who believe in guaranteed (and high) returns. Naturally, none of these investors bothered to verify whether the necessary authorizations from the financial regulator were actually in place.
but in my opinion, the biggest long-term implication is that this case could become a major test of who ultimately controls seized Bitcoin: the victims of the fraud, the government pursuing confiscation, or the jurisdiction holding the assets.
Nothing has changed since the creation of bitcoin: the person who holds the access keys is the one who has control.
What direction would yall prefer that the pendulum swung towards? Especially at this time, when the demand for self-custody is at a significant high.
Id like to hear your take on this.
What I find particularly curious in this story is how the scales of "greed" will ultimately tip; there is currently a debate over the form in which investor's funds should be returned. If they are to be repaid in traditional currency, which seems the most likely outcome, then who will end up with the remaining cryptocurrency assets? After all, the value of these confiscated assets has risen significantly since the 20142017 period.
Amazingly. At least, after all these years, the regulators have finally taken pity and decided to return the money to the affected investors.
