Bloomberg: Prince Group's Chen Zhi Demands NY Court "Return All Bitcoins," The Complete Record of a Money Laundering Empire's Fall

Bloomberg in-depth investigation reveals that Prince Group founder Chen Zhi has built an international “pig-butchering” scam empire that earns over $30 million a day through carefully cultivated political and business networks. The empire only began to collapse when the U.S. confiscated 127,271 bitcoins (worth $15 billion) under his control. Bloomberg points out that Chen Zhi has long operated between legitimate business and underground crime, with such scale and political protection that he is considered “one of the most significant transnational organized crime groups in modern history.”

(Background: Prince Group founder Chen Zhi is detained; after seizing 127,271 BTC, he will be extradited to China for trial.)

(Additional background: Seizure of 127,271 bitcoins! U.S. targets Southeast Asia’s “pig-butchering” Prince Group and sanctions Huayuan Group simultaneously.)

Table of Contents

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• From Internet Cafe Boy to Cambodian Real Estate Tycoon
• Pig-butchering Empire: A Crime Machine Earning $30 Million Daily
• Transnational Money Laundering Network: Hundreds of Bank Accounts Worldwide
• Path to Destruction: From International Sanctions to Midnight Escort
• Lingering Aftermath: Thousands of Workers Released, but the Empire’s Remnants Remain

On Chen Zhi’s superyacht, parties never stop. Professional DJs blast deafening electronic music; Cuban cigars and aged Macallan whisky flow endlessly; Cambodian politicians, Singaporean and Taiwanese tycoons come and go. These lavish gatherings are just one way this Chinese-born businessman has carefully built his influence network. On the surface, Chen Zhi appears as a self-made Cambodian charity entrepreneur; behind the scenes, U.S. authorities accuse him of leading a criminal group fueled by slavery and violence, stealing billions of dollars from New York to Asia.

Based on in-depth interviews with over 20 insiders, Bloomberg reconstructs Chen Zhi’s rise and fall in full detail.

From Internet Cafe Boy to Cambodian Real Estate Tycoon

Born in 1987 in Fujian, China, Chen Zhi initially ran internet cafes and gaming centers. After China cracked down on private servers in 2011, he moved to Cambodia and obtained Cambodian citizenship in 2014 at just 26 years old. He then founded Prince Real Estate, quickly becoming a landmark developer on the Phnom Penh skyline.

As his wealth grew, Chen Zhi expanded his political connections: donating 13 Kia trucks to the Cambodian National Police, and giving over $2 million to the Cambodian Red Cross controlled by Hun Sen’s wife. In 2020, the Cambodian king awarded him the title “Neak Oknha” (equivalent to a noble title), and Hun Sen appointed him as a personal advisor. He even established a watchmaking school—during the 2022 ASEAN Summit, Hun Sen presented watches bearing the Prince Group crown logo to Biden and Duterte.

Pig-butchering Empire: A Crime Machine Earning $30 Million Daily

Under the guise of legitimate businesses, Prince Group developed zones called “Mango Park” and “Golden God of Wealth Tech Park” across Cambodia, and heavily invested in Sihanoukville. These zones were later identified by U.S. investigators as notorious scam hubs.

FBI investigations revealed that a close associate of Chen Zhi boasted that in 2018, the group made over $30 million daily from pig-butchering scams and related illegal activities. Some of the funds were used to build cryptocurrency mining facilities, with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies easily transferred across borders.

U.S. indictments state that Chen Zhi personally monitored operations. When someone caused trouble, he would approve beatings—on the condition that they “don’t kill him.” He also ordered, “We must keep an eye on them, don’t let them escape.”

Transnational Money Laundering Network: Hundreds of Bank Accounts Worldwide

Chen Zhi controlled over 100 entities through companies set up in places like the British Virgin Islands. He owned office buildings in London’s financial district, leased an island in Palau for 99 years, and held a 50% stake in Cuba’s cigar giant Habanos.

Court documents show Chen Zhi and his companies opened hundreds of accounts with Deutsche Bank, Swiss UBS, OCBC Bank in Singapore, and its private banking division, UK digital bank Revolut, and Malayan Banking in Malaysia. They used Taiwanese accounts to buy luxury homes and Korean accounts for crypto trading.

Leo Lin, a senior lecturer in security studies at Charles Sturt University in Australia, told Bloomberg, “This is considered one of the largest and most significant transnational organized crime groups in modern history.” He noted that Chen Zhi’s close ties with governments allow him to operate at a “rare scale beyond state-level actions.”

Path to Destruction: From International Sanctions to Midnight Escort

In October 2025, the U.S. announced comprehensive sanctions against Chen Zhi and Prince Group, freezing their London properties. Federal prosecutors charged Chen Zhi with money laundering and wire fraud, revealing that they had seized 127,271 bitcoins—worth $15 billion at the time—marking the largest U.S. cryptocurrency seizure ever.

The ripple effects of sanctions spread rapidly. Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Thailand launched investigations; South Korea also sanctioned Chen Zhi and his associates. Authorities across Asia identified or seized over $1 billion in bank accounts and assets.

Meanwhile, border conflicts between Cambodia and Thailand escalated, and unprecedented pressure was exerted by Washington and Beijing on Phnom Penh. On January 7, 2026, late at night, Cambodia announced the arrest and extradition of Chen Zhi. Chinese state media footage showed Chen Zhi shaved his signature goat beard, dressed in blue prison clothes, with a black hood over his head, being escorted off a plane by Beijing’s “Blue Sword” special forces.

Lingering Aftermath: Thousands of Workers Released, but the Empire’s Remnants Remain

After extradition, Cambodia revoked Chen Zhi’s nationality, ordered the central bank to liquidate Prince Bank, closed the watchmaking school, and suspended major real estate projects. Thousands of workers from China, Indonesia, Pakistan, and other countries emerged from suspected scam zones in Sihanoukville—many only able to leave after guards allowed them to escape.

However, former California prosecutor Erin West warned, “I don’t think the Prince Empire is finished. He’s a genius in organizational structure, hiding a lot of things. It will take a long time for governments to fully dismantle what he’s built.”

Studies estimate that Cambodia’s scam industry employs over 150,000 workers, generating $19 billion annually. Some zones have already begun posting new recruitment ads online. Brian Hanley, head of the Asia-Pacific Anti-Scam Alliance, said, “The real test isn’t how many zones are raided or which big bosses are taken down, but whether the amount of scams and flow of funds truly decrease.”