The Metropolitan Police has secured a conviction in what is believed to be the world's largest cryptocurrency seizure, valued at more than £5.5 billion ($7.3 billion).
Zhimin Qian, 47, also known as Yadi Zhang, pleaded guilty today at Southwark Crown Court to acquiring and possessing criminal property under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Police said she conducted a multibillion-pound fraudulent Bitcoin scheme that defrauded more than 128,000 victims in China between 2014 and 2017.
Qian was the mastermind behind a company that promised investors high returns of 100%–300% of their investment. Through this scheme, she reportedly raised 40 billion yuan from around 130,000 investors.
Her early promotion of Bitcoin earned her the nickname "Bitcoin Queen" in China, where she promoted cryptocurrency as "digital gold".
When the scheme collapsed in 2017, she converted the proceeds into Bitcoin and fled China to the United Kingdom.