Enforcement Actions

The Jing'an District Court in Shanghai tried a virtual currency investment dispute case. Ms. Wu sued after being induced by a host to invest 1.05 million yuan and was unable to withdraw funds later. The court held that her investment actions violated laws and public order and morality, ruling that Ms. Wu must bear the losses herself and dismissing her claims. This verdict serves as a significant warning to investors engaging in speculative virtual currency investments.

The Gangnam Police Station in South Korea discovered 22 Bitcoins (worth approximately $1.5 million) transferred from a USB cold wallet. The Bitcoins were not detected during the investigation pause. The Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Department has launched an investigation to determine the cause of the fund outflow and whether there are any internal personnel involved. This incident is related to the loss of 320 Bitcoins by the Gwangju Prosecutor's Office.

Seoul Gangnam Police Station in South Korea has discovered that 22 Bitcoins seized since November 2021 have been transferred out from a USB cold wallet, unnoticed due to a suspension of the investigation. The Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Department has launched an investigation to determine the cause of the fund loss and whether any internal personnel are involved. This discovery stems from a nationwide review of the Bitcoin loss incident at the Gwangju Prosecutor's Office.

February 13 News, South Korea's law enforcement system has exposed further vulnerabilities in digital asset management. The Seoul Gangnam Police Station confirmed that in an investigation, Bitcoin seized and stored in November 2021 was recently found to have been transferred from a USB cold wallet. Internal checks revealed that the involved amount was 22 Bitcoins, estimated at approximately $1.5 million at current prices. The police have confirmed this to the media. According to disclosures, the physical USB drive of the cold wallet was not lost, but on-chain assets were successfully transferred out. Due to the investigation being temporarily halted, this anomaly went unnoticed for a long time until a recent nationwide review of evidence and digital asset management uncovered it. After local media first reported the incident, it sparked public doubts about law enforcement agencies' digital asset custody mechanisms.

Praetorian Group International CEO Ramil Ventura Palafox was sentenced to 20 years in prison for operating a $200 million Bitcoin Ponzi scheme. The scheme resulted in over 90,000 investors losing more than $62.69 million. Palafox used new investor funds to pay returns and used part of the funds to purchase luxury goods.

Praetorian Group International CEO Ramil Ventura Palafox was sentenced to 20 years in prison for orchestrating a $200 million Bitcoin Ponzi scheme. He falsely promised high returns to 90,000 investors, resulting in a loss of $62 million.

Israeli authorities have charged a civilian and a reserve member of the defense forces with using military secrets to place bets on the prediction market Polymarket, earning over $150,000 through accurate predictions of six military operations. The incident has sparked controversy over insider trading and could impact future regulation of prediction markets.

A Connecticut man, Elmin Redzepagic, has been indicted on 21 counts for defrauding investors of $950,000 in a crypto scheme, which he disguised as trading but funneled to an offshore gambling site.

Several Taiwanese financial institutions, including private banks and pure online banks, have completed negotiations with partnered VASPs over the past year to submit applications to the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) for a trial virtual asset custody business. However, they have been repeatedly rejected. The FSC's reason is that "the number of warning accounts is too high," and they require banks to significantly reduce the number of warning accounts before their applications can have a chance of success.

The Northern District of Ohio Prosecutor's Office warned on Thursday to be cautious of love scams during Valentine's Day, as crypto fraud and organized crime networks target the peak sales season. Authorities urge the public to stay vigilant, as scammers exploit online relationships to steal money, often building trust over weeks or months before luring victims into crypto payments and fake investment schemes. San Jose widow Margaret Loke lost nearly $1 million in the scam.

The amount of cryptocurrency inflow suspected to be linked to human trafficking networks is projected to increase by 85% in 2025, but crypto analytics firm Chainalysis states that blockchain transparency could help disrupt these networks' operations. Chainalysis reported on Thursday that the total transaction volume flowing to suspected trafficking networks (primarily located in Southeast Asia) "reached hundreds of millions of dollars in identified services."

The American Bankers Association (ABA) urges the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to slow down the approval process for national trust bank charters for crypto and stablecoin companies until the regulatory environment under the GENIUS Act becomes clearer. The association warns that national trust charters could be used to circumvent SEC or CFTC registration and review, even though these companies' activities would normally trigger securities or derivatives regulation.

CFTC Chairman Michael Selig appoints a 35-member advisory committee of senior executives from the crypto industry to provide guidance on the regulation of breakthrough technologies such as AI and blockchain, with market founder Shayne Coplan of Polymarket predicted to be selected. Traditional financial giants including CME, DTCC, and Nasdaq representatives.

February 13 News, Chainalysis released a new report showing that the amount of cryptocurrency funds flowing into suspected human trafficking networks surged by 85% in 2025, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars, mainly concentrated in Southeast Asia. The involved services include scam operations, online casinos, and Chinese money laundering networks that have been active in recent years. The report points out that these cryptocurrency transactions primarily support international escort services, prostitution networks, kidnapping labor intermediaries, and suppliers of child sexual abuse materials, with stablecoins being the most commonly used in escort and prostitution services. Chainalysis emphasizes that although the inflow of funds has increased significantly, the transparency of blockchain provides law enforcement agencies with unprecedented investigative advantages. By analyzing identifiable transaction patterns and wallet clusters, regulators can trace the flow of funds and combat illegal networks.

February 13 News, Israeli authorities have arrested two individuals suspected of using confidential information to conduct military-related transactions on Polymarket, including a reservist and a civilian. A joint statement from the Israel Defense Forces, Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), and the police said the two are suspected of placing bets using classified information, and prosecutors have filed criminal charges for security offenses, bribery, and obstruction of justice. It is understood that the reservist is employed by Shin Bet, and the arrest highlights the potential security risks of prediction markets. Earlier this year, several insider trading cases on Polymarket drew attention, such as a user who successfully bet just hours before Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was captured by U.S. forces, earning approximately $400,000.

Bubblemaps disclosed on the X platform that Trove Markets refunded KOLs who participated in the pre-sale, but other investors suffered heavy losses. After the token collapse, it was found that the project team engaged in improper conduct towards investors and was suspected of improper fund flows, leading to strong community dissatisfaction and a significant drop in the token price.

February 12 News, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) took a significant step in the ongoing debate over the structure of the crypto market by officially inviting several senior executives from the crypto industry to join its Innovation Advisory Committee (IAC). This move is seen as an important signal of regulatory authorities accelerating dialogue with the digital asset industry and also introduces new variables to the U.S. cryptocurrency regulatory landscape. The invited members come from well-known companies and financial institutions, including Uniswap Labs, Ripple, Robinhood, CME Group, and Nasdaq. For the CFTC, which currently only regulates crypto derivatives and has not directly covered the spot market, such a concentrated introduction of industry expertise is uncommon. The committee was established last month with the goal of providing regulatory agencies with cutting-edge advice on blockchain, artificial intelligence, and new financial infrastructure.

Bitcoin (BTC) continues its sluggish trend, trading around $66,050 on February 13. Standard Chartered Bank warns that Bitcoin may drop to $50,000 before rebounding, with a year-end target price lowered to $100,000. The U.S. Department of Justice announced that PGI CEO was sentenced to 20 years in prison for allegedly running a $200 million Bitcoin Ponzi scheme.

SEC Chairman Paul Atkins testified before the Senate Banking Committee that prediction markets are a "significant issue," citing "potential overlaps in jurisdiction" currently primarily under CFTC jurisdiction, but with the two agencies working collaboratively. When asked whether clear rules will be established, he said "still to be seen," and stated that "securities are securities, and the definition of prediction markets and their products depends on specific interpretations."