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Regulation & Policy · 1 min read

US and UK Sanction Prince Group, Sever Huione Group Over Crypto Fraud

Treasury targets 146 Prince Group entities and bars Huione Group from the US financial system after $4 billion in illicit flows.

Editorial oversight: Julian Mercer, Chief Editor
Bearish

At a glance Final

What happened
The US and UK issued coordinated sanctions against 146 Prince Group targets and barred Cambodia-based Huione Group from the US financial system on Oct. 12.
Why it matters
The actions disrupt major laundering infrastructure that processed over $4 billion in proceeds from North Korean cyber heists and global investment scams.
Who is affected
US covered financial institutions, foreign banking partners processing dollar transactions, Huione Group, and designated Prince Group affiliates.
Takes effect
2026-10-12
What's next
Legal proceedings in the Eastern District of New York following the indictment of Chen Zhi.
Primary source
home.treasury.gov: U.S. and U.K. Take Largest Action Ever Targeting Cybercriminal Networks in Southeast Asia

Key points

  • FinCEN finalized a Section 311 rule barring Cambodian financial firm Huione Group from indirect and direct access to the US banking system.
  • Huione Group laundered over $4 billion in illicit funds between August 2021 and January 2025, including $37 million tied to North Korean cyber heists.
  • OFAC sanctioned 146 targets linked to Chen Zhi and Prince Group, while US prosecutors unsealed an indictment against Chen in New York.

The US Department of the Treasury and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office announced coordinated actions on Oct. 12 targeting Southeast Asian cybercrime syndicates linked to large-scale cryptocurrency fraud 1. The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated 146 targets tied to the Cambodia-based Prince Group Transnational Criminal Organization, led by Cambodian national Chen Zhi 1. Concurrently, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network finalized a rule under Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act prohibiting US financial institutions from maintaining correspondent accounts for Cambodian conglomerate Huione Group 1.

FinCEN found that Huione Group processed at least $4 billion in illicit proceeds between August 2021 and January 2025 1. These volumes included a minimum of $37 million in virtual currency stolen in Democratic People's Republic of Korea cyber heists, $36 million from fraudulent virtual currency investment schemes, and $300 million from other cyber frauds 1. The final rule bans domestic covered institutions from opening or servicing correspondent accounts for Huione Group and requires firms to prevent foreign banking institutions from routing Huione transactions through US accounts 1.

Indictment and Forced-Labor Compounds

Alongside the Treasury actions, federal prosecutors unsealed a criminal indictment against Chen Zhi in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York 1. The Treasury said Americans lost over $16.6 billion to online investment fraud in recent years, with Southeast Asian operations accounting for at least $10 billion in losses during 2024 1.

According to the Treasury, Prince Group operates at least ten scam compounds in Cambodia that rely on human trafficking and forced labor 1. Trafficked workers are coerced into conducting "pig butchering" investment frauds, building trust with victims before directing them into falsified investment platforms 1. The designations also targeted 117 affiliated shell companies across multiple jurisdictions, as well as Prince Group's efforts to establish resort infrastructure on a leased island in Palau 1.

Questions this story raises

What does FinCEN's Section 311 rule do to Huione Group?
It prohibits covered US financial institutions from establishing, maintaining, administering, or managing correspondent accounts for or on behalf of Huione Group, effectively cutting it off from the US financial system.
What illicit funds did Huione Group launder?
According to FinCEN, Huione Group processed at least $4 billion in illicit proceeds between August 2021 and January 2025, including at least $37 million from North Korean cyber attacks and over $336 million from investment scams and cyber fraud.

Sources

  1. [1] U.S. and U.K. Take Largest Action Ever Targeting Cybercriminal Networks in Southeast Asia — home.treasury.gov, October 12, 2026

Written by Basis Desk's newsroom system from the primary sources above and machine-verified against them before publication. Market figures marked "at the time of writing" come from live exchange data. Report an error: corrections@basisdesk.news · corrections policy.

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