JAKARTA Chinese authorities managed to apprehend the perpetrators of money laundering crimes through cryptocurrencies. The Hunan Provincial Police managed to arrest 63 people on suspicion of money laundering worth US$1.7 billion (equivalent to Rp26.5 trillion).
The police announced that the suspects under the identified leader Hong had used cryptocurrencies to exchange their stolen funds into US dollars. The action was carried out by the gang since 2018.
Hong, along with the suspects, have laundered profits from fraud and gambling across China. Subsequently, during the arrests, police seized more than $41.9 million, 100 mobile phones, and computers from the suspects. Recent developments underscore the fear of critics worrying about using cryptocurrencies for illicit activities.
This is not the first time China has taken serious action against cryptocurrency players. In June 2021, China arrested more than 1,100 people suspected of money laundering by telephone and internet. Furthermore, also in Hunan, the authorities arrested 93 people for allegedly laundering US$5.6 billion through cryptocurrencies last September.
The Chinese government has tightened regulations related to crypto by prohibiting transactions or activities related to these digital assets. In September 2021, where Chinese authorities strictly prohibit cryptocurrencies directly, either for the use, payment, mining, or crypto exchange.
Since then, the Chinese government has started promoting the use of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) aimed at stemming cryptocurrencies. China has been recorded to have facilitated around 100 billion yuan for CBDCs since late August.
However, the CBDC project is still in the testing phase. The government implemented a pilot CBDC in 23 cities in China before implementing it massively in various provinces in the near future.
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