Taiwan Authorities Bust Massive $72M Crypto Money Laundering Operation

Taiwan just delivered a massive blow to crypto criminals—uncovering the largest digital asset money laundering scheme in its history.

The $72M Crackdown

Authorities swooped in on a sophisticated network moving millions through cryptocurrency channels. The operation laundered dirty money across borders—using crypto's pseudonymous nature to mask illicit flows.

Not Your Average Bank Run

While regulators cheer the bust, it’s another reminder that where there’s money, there’s mischief—even in decentralized finance. Traditional finance might be slow, but at least their laundering requires more than a seed phrase.

Taiwan’s financial watchdog isn’t playing games. They’re tracking, seizing, and charging—proving that even in the wild west of crypto, the law can still pack a punch.

• The Taiwan Prosecuting Department has exposed a crypto laundering scheme that caused over 1,500 people to lose $72 million.
• So far, the court has seized properties and frozen accounts tied to the scam, but more importantly, the lead in the scam has been sentenced to 25 years in imprisonment for his failure to admit to guilt.

The Official Prosecuting Department in Taiwan has arrested 14 persons in a crypto scheme worth about $72 million. So far since the adoption of cryptocurrency, Taiwan has kept very strict regulations on their stance on cryptocurrency.

The government has clearly come out to state that cryptocurrencies that are not tied to the currency of any nation of the world are not acceptable in Taiwan. So this new crypto laundering exposure could further tighten the regulations in the country.

How the Crypto Laundering Happened

According to a report recorded by the local news UDN, the prosecutors in Shilin District charged about 14 individuals with crypto fraud, laundering, and organized crime. The prosecuting department started the investigations in the case in April 2025. At that time, a few members of the organization were arrested, including their leader, Shi Qiren, who has now been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment for leading the scam and refusing to admit to guilt.

According to the report, Shi Qiren, the lead of the scam; his wife, Lin; the head of business, Yang; and others worked together under companies named “CoinW” and “BiXiang Technology.” They managed to comfortably set up over 40 outlets for their operation in Taiwan, and with that they were able to collect more than one million yuan in franchise fees.

They used security partners to install deposit machines that helped gather cash from victims and later changed the money into foreign currency, moving it abroad to buy USDT. In order for them to cover their trail and hide the large profits, they created a series of complex transfer layers.

The team also went ahead and claimed that they were the only group authorized by the Financial Supervisory Commission, and with that they were able to lure in many investors. By April, about 1,539 people had lost NT$1.275B to fraud, while the laundering reached NT$2.3B.

So far, the prosecutors have taken 1.275 billion yuan gained from the crimes, which includes 640,000 USDT, Bitcoin, TRX, over 60 million yuan in cash, two high-end cars, and frozen bank accounts worth more than 100 million yuan. The rest will be recovered afterward.