In a series of dramatic, coordinated raids across Asia and Europe, authorities have moved to dismantle what U.S. prosecutors describe as one of the world’s most sophisticated and lucrative transnational criminal organizations: the Prince Holding Group, led by Cambodia-based tycoon Chen Zhi. Over the past month, more than $500 million in assets linked to Chen and his associates have been seized in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore, while the U.S. has confiscated an unprecedented $14 to $15 billion in Bitcoin tied to the group’s sprawling cyber-fraud empire.
The whirlwind of enforcement actions began on October 14, 2025, when the U.S. Department of Justice indicted Chen Zhi on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. According to the indictment, Chen’s criminal network—operating under the Prince Group banner—allegedly defrauded over 250 victims in the U.S. alone, with their total global haul believed to be in the tens of billions of dollars. The same day, the U.S. and U.K. governments jointly imposed sweeping sanctions against Chen, 146 associates, and more than 100 companies, formally designating the Prince Group as a “transnational criminal organisation.”
U.S. authorities wasted no time escalating their campaign. On October 17, they announced the seizure of more than 127,000 Bitcoin—valued at up to $15 billion—linked to Chen’s operations, calling it one of the largest digital asset forfeitures in history. This unprecedented move sent shockwaves through financial institutions across Asia, with banks and regulators scrambling to freeze accounts and trace illicit flows.
According to The Associated Press and Focus Taiwan, the Prince Group’s criminal activities were wide-ranging and deeply disturbing. Authorities allege that Chen and his network operated “scammer centres” in Cambodia, where victims of human trafficking were forced into labor to perpetrate fraudulent cryptocurrency and gambling schemes—a practice known as “pig butchering.” The U.N. has warned that such scam operations, based in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and the Philippines, generate tens of billions of dollars every year by targeting victims worldwide with fake investments, romance scams, and more.
Chen, a Chinese national who gained Cambodian and British citizenship, was once a fixture among Cambodia’s business elite. He was granted the honorary title “neak oknha”—akin to a British lord—and served as an adviser to both current Prime Minister Hun Manet and his predecessor, Hun Sen. However, prosecutors say the bulk of Chen’s fortune came not from legitimate business ventures, but from cyber-fraud and forced labor. According to the U.S. indictment, Chen once bragged that his “pig butchering” scams were pulling in $30 million a day.
The international crackdown gathered pace as intelligence from U.S. authorities spurred action across borders. On October 15, Taiwanese prosecutors launched a joint task force with the Investigation Bureau and the National Police Agency, targeting Chen’s financial flows through Taiwan’s real estate and investment markets. On November 4, in what became Taiwan’s largest anti-fraud operation to date, authorities carried out 47 simultaneous searches on homes and offices linked to senior Prince Group figures, including Taiwan Prince Real Estate Investment Co. and Alphaconnect Investments Co. By the end of the day, 25 suspects were detained and 10 witnesses summoned for questioning.
The asset haul was staggering. Investigators seized 18 properties—including 11 luxury apartments and 48 parking spaces in Taipei’s upscale Peace Palace complex—collectively worth NT$3.81 billion. The Taipei District Court later confirmed the seizure in a ruling dated October 27. Authorities also confiscated 26 luxury vehicles, from Rolls-Royce and Ferrari to Lamborghini, Porsche, and Bugatti, valued at nearly NT$478 million, alongside 60 bank accounts containing NT$236 million. In total, the assets seized in Taiwan alone amounted to roughly NT$4.53 billion (US$145 million).
Meanwhile, Singaporean prosecutors announced on October 30 the seizure of more than SGD 150 million (US$114 million) in assets linked to Chen, including a yacht, six properties, eleven cars, and an extensive collection of fine liquor. Singapore’s Minister for National Development, Chee Hong Tat, told parliament that Chen and his associates were under a money-laundering investigation, and that tax privileges for two single-family offices connected to the Prince network had been revoked.
Hong Kong authorities, not to be outdone, disclosed the freezing of HK$2.75 billion (US$353 million) in assets—mostly cash, stocks, and funds—believed to be tied to Chen’s network. U.K. investigators, acting in concert with U.S. officials, seized a £12 million (US$15.6 million) mansion in North London and a £100 million (US$130 million) commercial property as part of their probe.
The scale and speed of the asset seizures have been matched by other enforcement measures. South Korean authorities revealed that Prince Group had concealed deposits of over 90 billion won (about US$67 million) in Cambodian branches of five South Korean banks, which were subsequently frozen. In Cambodia, the Commercial Gambling Management Committee suspended the Silver Star casino license in Bavet following raids that led to the arrest of 23 foreigners identified as heads of scam centers. Cambodia’s national police also ordered the closure of four casinos owned by Jin Bei Group, closely tied to Prince Group, amid suspicions they facilitated online fraud.
As the crackdown intensified, the United States blacklisted at least 18 Hong Kong-linked companies associated with the network, including two publicly listed firms. South Korea’s National Tax Service launched a tax investigation into Prince Group’s Seoul branch, suspecting it used a real estate advisory firm to funnel investor funds to Cambodia and conceal proceeds from online crime.
The Prince Group’s criminal activities were not the only focus of recent international law enforcement. On November 5, the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court in China sentenced five senior members of the “Bai mafia family” in Myanmar to death for running 41 scam operations that caused RMB 29 billion (about US$4 billion) in losses. This parallel crackdown underscores the growing resolve of authorities to confront the transnational web of cybercrime and forced labor that has flourished across Southeast Asia.
Despite the mounting evidence and global asset freezes, the Prince Holding Group has yet to issue a formal statement. Cambodia’s Minister of Information, Pheaktra Neth, declined to comment when asked about Chen’s political ties. The group’s silence, however, stands in stark contrast to the relentless pace of international enforcement actions now threatening to unravel its empire.
As the dust settles from these sweeping raids and seizures, it’s clear that the world’s law enforcement agencies are no longer willing to let cybercrime syndicates operate with impunity behind the façade of legitimate business. With billions in assets frozen and dozens of suspects detained, the global campaign against the Prince Group and its associates marks a decisive new chapter in the fight against organized digital crime.
