In a cryptocurrency fraud money laundering case, the self-proclaimed 'Goddess of Wealth', Qian Zhimin, is waiting for the verdict in London today! This 47-year-old Chinese woman may face 14 years in prison for holding and transferring criminal proceeds.

The French newspaper (Liberation) reported that through fraud, this mysterious Chinese woman, who calls herself the 'Goddess of Wealth', scammed 128,000 people in China and is living a lavish lifestyle, owning top-tier jewelry, a luxury mansion in London, and private staff. She once held billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin and is currently awaiting the verdict for the British part of this astonishing case.

Qian Zhimin (Zhimin Qian) was accused of coordinating a Ponzi scheme (i.e., paying old investors with the funds from new investors) through her investment company 'Blue Sky Green Land' located in Tianjin, China, between 2014 and 2017. In this case, over 61,000 bitcoins were seized, valued at over $6 billion at current market prices.

Since the fraudulent activities occurred in China, Qian Zhimin was prosecuted in the UK only for holding and transferring criminal proceeds (i.e., bitcoin), to which she pleaded guilty. She is currently in custody and may face up to 14 years in prison. On Monday, during the first day of a two-day sentencing hearing held at Southwark Crown Court in London, she appeared short and stout, wearing an Asian tunic with a floral pattern, with gray-white hair styled in a bun, expressionless as the facts were read out.

UK police seized assets worth £11 million.

The report continues that the prosecution representative detailed this scam case, which was recruited through word of mouth, social media, and various events. This prosecution representative continued to point out: 'Investors were misled by these tricks', and the goal of these 'tricks was to enrich Ms. Qian herself.'

After coming under the attention of Chinese authorities, the defendant Qian Zhimin ultimately exchanged most of the victims' funds for bitcoin and left China in 2017 with forged documents. During her flight, she traveled through Europe, staying at the Ritz-Carlton in Berlin, purchasing Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry in Zurich, and then arriving in the UK.

Reports indicate that, according to the BBC, in the UK, Qian Zhimin's accomplice, British Chinese Jian Wen (音译), attempted to launder money by purchasing real estate. Qian Zhimin was living in a luxury house in London with a monthly rent of £17,000 and employed full-time staff. She had attempted to purchase this luxury house valued at £23 million but was unsuccessful. Her accomplice Jian Wen was arrested in 2020 and sentenced to 6 years and 8 months in prison in 2024.

Qian Zhimin also kept a diary at her residence, expressing the intention to become the monarch of 'Liberland'. This micro 'country' is located between Croatia and Serbia and is established by thousands of libertarians out of thin air. Ultimately, due to police surveillance of another co-defendant (47-year-old Malaysian man Seng Hok Ling, who pleaded guilty to involvement in money laundering), Qian Zhimin was arrested in York in 2024. The police confiscated cash, gold, and cryptocurrency with a total value of £11 million.

'Farmers, butchers, taxi drivers' are all victims.

Reports point out that Jackson Ng is the victim representative lawyer for the civil part of the case. He told AFP that the victims 'are usually people lacking financial knowledge,' including 'farmers, butchers, taxi drivers, or housewives.' One victim told Chinese media (Life Weekly) that after meeting a female entrepreneur with a 'charming', 'sincere', and 'confident' voice, he was persuaded to invest over 200,000 yuan. The lawyer also mentioned a couple in their forties from Shanxi (northern China) who lost hundreds of thousands of pounds in retirement savings and their daughter's savings after 'attending a public introduction session in 2016', leading to their daughter cutting off contact with them.

Qian Zhimin's lawyer explained in September that Qian Zhimin pleaded guilty hoping to 'appease' the victims and emphasized that 'the substantial appreciation of cryptocurrency' would be able to 'compensate for their losses'. However, another victim representative, William Glover, pointed out in October that more than 1,300 victims have come forward in this case, some of whom 'suffered significant personal losses, impacting their lives, marriages, families, and careers.'

The report finally mentioned that this case has also sparked another controversy regarding the compensation mechanism of the UK authorities. The High Court in London will rule on whether victims should be compensated based on their initial investment amounts or according to the value after the appreciation of bitcoin. Bitcoin was worth about $3,600 at the end of 2018, reached $125,000 in early October, and is currently priced at about $100,000.

Qian Zhimin

Transferred from Radio France Internationale.