On December 1, 2025, a sense of panic swept through Phnom Penh as Huione Pay, one of Cambodia’s most prominent digital financial platforms, abruptly suspended all operations and froze customer withdrawals. The company, already mired in controversy over alleged involvement in illicit crypto transactions and money laundering, cited a sudden surge in withdrawal requests as the cause for what it called a temporary shutdown. In the days that followed, long lines of anxious users formed outside Huione Pay’s headquarters on Norodom Boulevard, desperate for answers and access to their locked funds.
According to CoinDesk, the platform’s troubles were not new. U.S. and Cambodian authorities had long warned that Huione Pay’s operations were deeply entangled with money laundering and crypto-based scams. The U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) had already severed the Huione Group’s ties to the American financial system earlier in 2025, after identifying the company as a money-laundering institution. The National Bank of Cambodia, acting on its own concerns, revoked Huione Pay’s license in June 2024 for violating local financial regulations, though the specific violations were never publicly detailed.
When the shutdown was announced, Huione Pay posted a statement on the glass doors of its headquarters, confirming it was facing what amounted to a classic run on the bank. The notice, written in Chinese, acknowledged that the company could not keep up with the volume of withdrawal requests. It also outlined a deferred repayment scheme for customers, offering two starkly different options. Users could either deposit their frozen money into high-yield wealth products, with the promise of full principal repayment within 18 months and monthly interest payments, or they could opt to withdraw their money in monthly installments—though only after a six-month waiting period. During the suspension, all Huione Pay service locations would remain shuttered.
For many Cambodians, the abrupt halt was more than an inconvenience; it was a financial crisis. Tens of thousands of users, some of whom relied on Huione Pay for everyday transactions and savings, suddenly found themselves locked out of their accounts with little information about if or when their money would be returned. As reported by local media and CoinDesk, crowds gathered outside the company’s headquarters, with several individuals voicing their frustration and fear of long-term financial loss. Many complained about not being notified in advance, and the uncertainty only deepened as the days dragged on.
Huione Pay’s troubles are rooted in a series of escalating regulatory actions and international scrutiny. In May 2024, FinCEN designated the Huione Group as a money-laundering institution, instructing U.S. financial institutions to terminate all correspondent banking and money transmission services related to the group. According to U.S. authorities, Huione was accused of providing laundering services to transnational fraud networks, including those based in North Korea and Southeast Asia. These networks allegedly ran schemes ranging from online theft to cryptocurrency investment fraud, with Huione Pay serving as a crucial financial conduit.
The scale of illicit activity was staggering. CoinDesk reported that Elliptic, a blockchain analytics firm, identified that Huione Pay and its Telegram-based marketplace, Huione Guarantee, processed as much as $98 billion in illicit crypto transactions before the shutdown in 2025. These transactions included funds from virtual currency scams, cyber heists, and laundering operations linked to North Korea. The numbers alone were enough to raise eyebrows across the global financial community.
Private-sector actors also took action. In November 2025, South Korean crypto exchange Dunamu, which operates Upbit, announced it had closed over 200 accounts linked to organizations associated with the Huione network in Cambodia. Upbit’s internal monitoring systems had detected suspicious virtual asset transactions that appeared to be attempts to transfer funds through the exchange for laundering purposes.
The company’s response to the crisis was to rebrand. Amid ongoing financial scrutiny, Huione Pay began operating under a new name, H-Pay, in what appeared to be an effort to distance itself from the mounting scandals. But the rebranding did little to quell public anxiety. For users whose savings were frozen, the name on the door mattered far less than the fate of their money.
Huione Pay’s shutdown is expected to last until at least January 5, 2026, according to the company’s official statement. During this period, all service locations will remain closed, and customers must choose between the two repayment options. The deferred repayment scheme, while offering hope of eventual restitution, has left many users skeptical. The prospect of waiting six months just to begin receiving monthly installments—or 18 months for full repayment through investment products—has done little to reassure those who depend on the platform for their financial stability.
The situation has also drawn attention to the broader risks associated with unregulated or underregulated digital finance platforms in Southeast Asia. For years, authorities in Cambodia and abroad have struggled to keep pace with the rapid evolution of fintech and crypto-based services. The Huione Pay saga underscores the potential dangers for both individual consumers and the integrity of the financial system as a whole.
Regulators and financial watchdogs are now facing tough questions. How did a single company manage to process nearly $100 billion in illicit crypto transactions under the noses of authorities? What safeguards are in place to protect consumers from similar collapses in the future? And perhaps most pressing for the thousands of Cambodians affected: When, if ever, will they see their money again?
For now, the only certainty is uncertainty. As the shutdown continues, the crowds outside Huione Pay’s headquarters serve as a stark reminder of the human cost of financial mismanagement and regulatory gaps. The story of Huione Pay is still unfolding, but its impact on Cambodia’s financial landscape—and on the lives of its users—will be felt for years to come.