Multi-billion Dollar Transnational Cryptocurrency Money Laundering Scheme Orchestrated by Chinese Businessmen in Southeast Asia: United States Swindled for $2.6 Billion in a Year

Reuters reported on the “Pig Slaughtering” cryptocurrency scam, which involves a complex global fraud operation.

Contents:
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Understanding the Large-scale Cross-border “Pig Slaughtering” Case
Chinese Businessmen Colluding with Thai Officials in Transnational Fraud: Cryptocurrency Plays an Important Role
Chinese Businessman Wang Yicheng Targeted by the FBI
Wang Yicheng with an “Eighty Million Dollar” Cryptocurrency Wallet, Connected to Officials
Large Amounts of Illicit Funds Flow into Wang Yicheng’s Account
What is Wang Yicheng’s Relationship with Bitmain?
Did Wang Yicheng Use a Binance Account?
Fake “Emma” Swindles a 71-year-old Californian, Using a Fake Exchange
Limited Impact of the Crackdown, Difficult to Trace Money Laundering Networks: Wang Yicheng is Just One Piece
Key Figure: Wang Yicheng, a Chinese businessman and vice chairman of a Chinese business association in Thailand, is involved with a cryptocurrency account that has received over $90 million, including $9.1 million related to fraudulent activities.
Modus Operandi: The fraudulent activities involve setting up websites designed to resemble legitimate trading platforms, establishing online trust with victims, and luring them into false cryptocurrency investments.
Impact on Victims: These “Pig Slaughtering” scams have caused significant financial losses worldwide. In the United States alone, victims lost $2.6 billion within a year. For instance, a 71-year-old man from California lost $2.7 million and faced serious financial consequences.
Complex Operation: It is just a part of a larger money laundering network. Wang Yicheng’s cryptocurrency account is just one node in this network.
Southeast Asian Fraud Hub: Investigations have revealed that these “Pig Slaughtering” scams are linked to the KK Park industrial park on the Myanmar-Thailand border, known for labor trafficking and online fraud.
International Action: Crackdown operations have been launched in China, Thailand, and Myanmar.
Reuters has investigated the sinister world of Asia-led “Pig Slaughtering” fraud, which has swindled billions of dollars worldwide.
The mastermind behind this fraud network is Wang Yicheng, a Chinese businessman and vice president of a prominent trade group in Thailand. Reuters revealed that Wang’s cryptocurrency account received over $90 million, with at least $9.1 million directly related to these scams. Suspiciously, he has connections with Thai law enforcement and political elites.
In January of this year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at the Internet Fraud Conference in the United States detailed the Southeast Asian online scams and identified Wang Yicheng as one of the beneficiaries of the fraud, locking onto his cryptocurrency wallet.

According to the identity card used to register the cryptocurrency account, Wang Yicheng was born in Ningbo, China, in 1982.
Wang Yicheng’s cryptocurrency account activity ranged from November 2020 to November 2022, with deposits rapidly increasing, some exceeding $100,000. By 2021, his influence within the Thai-China Economic and Trade Association grew. The association shares offices with a group associated with one of China’s largest criminal organizations, the 14K Triad. Wang Yicheng has multiple connections with Thai and Chinese officials, raising suspicions about the extent of official knowledge or involvement in these scams.
By 2022, the funds in Wang Yicheng’s account swelled to nearly $79 million, highlighting the massive scale of these operations. The funds were transferred through multiple layers of wallets, making the tracking process complex.
According to blockchain analysis firm Coinfirm, between June 26, 2022, and October 23, 2022, over $102,000 from a fraudulent group’s wallet was deposited into Wang Yicheng’s account in his name. Almost all the cryptocurrency deposited into Wang Yicheng’s registered account was transferred to other wallets.
Coinfirm stated that from January 2021 to October 2022, approximately $87.5 million was transferred to nearly 50 other cryptocurrency wallets, including at least five registered with regional cryptocurrency exchanges.
Wang Yicheng has been involved in business ventures in both China and Thailand, from selling electronic products to bird’s nest. By 2018, he became a partner of Bitmain’s Thai subsidiary, a Chinese mining equipment company. However, Bitmain told Reuters that he is not an employee but a close partner.
According to financial records obtained by Reuters, the cryptocurrency account registered in November 2020 was with the Binance exchange and accessed from Bangkok. On November 3, 2022, activity in Wang Yicheng’s cryptocurrency account suddenly stopped. Coinfirm suggests that based on the pattern of transfers to the account, Binance may have started an investigation and frozen the account. Binance only stated that it is committed to combating “Pig Slaughtering” scams, assisting law enforcement in identifying, freezing, and confiscating criminal assets, providing investigation training, and conducting crime prevention activities.
Binance founder Zhao Changpeng resigned on Tuesday and acknowledged violating U.S. anti-money laundering laws, reaching a $4.3 billion settlement agreement. U.S. authorities stated that over more than five years, Binance facilitated transactions involving users “laundering” proceeds from criminal activities, including fraud.
(
Binance Founder Zhao Changpeng Agrees to Resign, Pleads Guilty, Binance Fined $4.3 Billion
)
A 71-year-old Californian man gave his $2.7 million savings to a fraudster pretending to be a young woman named “Emma.” This is a typical operation mode of scams, where scammers establish trust through online chats and lure victims into investing in fake cryptocurrency exchanges.
In the United States alone, victims lost over $2.6 billion last year, more than double the previous year. The psychological impact is equally devastating, with some victims choosing suicide due to financial losses.

Image from Reuters report
Despite increasing attention from international law enforcement agencies, the masterminds behind these operations remain largely elusive.
The complexity of these schemes, including money laundering networks and intricate financial transactions, further complicates the tracking of beneficiaries. For example, Wang Yicheng’s account is just one node in a larger money flow network, and it is unclear whether he is the ultimate recipient of the funds.
FBI
Pig Slaughtering
Bitcoin
Wang Yicheng
United States
Fraud

Further reading
U.S. Treasury Department Calls for Expanded Enforcement Tools, Sanctions Authority, Targeting “Stablecoin Issuers”
U.S. Cryptocurrency Lobbying Spending to Reach 20% of Traditional Financial Institutions in 2023