The United States Treasury Department and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on four individuals and 41 entities accused of supporting Prince Group, a Cambodian conglomerate alleged to operate crypto scam compounds that use trafficked workers for investment and romance fraud.
The action targets offshore companies, nominee owners, and administrators that the Treasury says helped Prince Group executives conceal assets and evade earlier sanctions imposed in October 2025 and June 2026. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said: "Cyber scam syndicates continue to steal billions of dollars from American victims while relying on sophisticated international business networks to launder their illicit proceeds."
Among those designated are Qiu Yong, who allegedly controls a network of British Virgin Islands and Hong Kong companies on behalf of Prince Group, including money lenders and wine businesses; his assistant Zhao Mengyao; He Yujing, wife of sanctioned executive Chen Bo, who received a Tokyo mansion after previous sanctions; and Visal Pang, who controls 11 Cambodian companies. Eleven companies still controlled by Chen Bo were also sanctioned, including Prince International Airlines and CB General Insurance.
Separately, OFAC designated Chui Kok Wa, a Malaysian national in Madagascar, for running a scam network that defrauded Americans of more than $400,000 in crypto.
The latest action brings the total number of Prince Group-linked designations to 226, following 146 entities sanctioned in October 2025 and 35 in June 2026. The U.S. is seeking forfeiture of roughly 127,271 Bitcoin, valued at about $14–15 billion, tied to Prince Group. FinCEN has identified approximately $12.7 billion in suspected financial activity linked to crypto investment scams, while the UN estimates scam operations across East and Southeast Asia cost victims between $88.3 billion and $114.1 billion in 2025.
The action was coordinated with the FBI, the Justice Department's Scam Center Strike Force, which has reported $580 million in crypto seizures and freezes, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Alaska, with assistance from authorities in the British Virgin Islands and the UK.
