Taiwanese cryptocurrency exchange Bitgin is under investigation by the nation’s police pressure for money laundering. According to native information reviews early this week, Yuting Zhang, the agency’s chief working officer, was arrested by Taiwanese police for his alleged function within the “Eighty-Eight Guild Hall” money laundering incident.
Previously, Zhemin Guo and Chengwen Tu, two native businessmen, have been accused by police of working a multibillion-dollar money laundering scheme by utilizing their overseas exchange workplaces and crypto exchange accounts to launder proceeds of crime obtained through wire fraud from abroad. Tu can be accused of defrauding the nation’s tax authorities by claiming 300 million New Taiwan {dollars} ($9.28 million) in fraudulent export tax refunds by way of the abroad sale of online game credit.
Taiwan at the moment has no official licensing regime for cryptocurrency exchanges. In September, Bitgin, together with its business friends, created the Virtual Asset Service Provider Preparatory Office for the needs of self-regulation and lobbying of political officers. Regarding the incident, Yuling Tsai, common counsel of the Taiwan VASP Association, mentioned:
“This time, a member of the preparatory group were involved in the investigation case. The preparatory group immediately held a meeting and issued a public response. The members involved in the case also took the initiative to suspend participation in the work of the preparatory group.”
In a statement on Nov. 13, the exchange said that its operations “are normal and user rights will not be affected.” As instructed by Bitgin, chief working officer Zhang was concerned with corporations of the Eighty-Eight Guild Hall money laundering incident from late 2021 to March 2022. However, Bitgin mentioned that Zhang ceased all communications with the counterparties after discovering money laundering allegations.
“At present, Bitgin is fully cooperating with the investigating unit and actively providing all necessary assistance to ensure the smooth conduct of the investigation and hopes that the facts can be clarified as soon as possible.”
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