The UK government has imposed sanctions on Xinbi, a Chinese-language crypto guarantee marketplace valued at about $20 billion, aiming to sever the platform’s access to the legitimate crypto ecosystem.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) said Xinbi provides crypto services, scam-enabling tools and other illicit support to bad actors and plays a central role in scam centers across Southeast Asia. The FCDO stated the sanctions will isolate the platform from the legitimate crypto ecosystem and significantly disrupt its ability to send and receive cryptocurrency transactions.
Under the measures, any UK-based assets linked to Xinbi will be frozen, and the platform will be barred from the UK’s financial, trade and travel networks. UK businesses, including banks, crypto firms and individuals, are prohibited from providing goods, services, loans or investments to Xinbi.
Chainalysis estimates Xinbi processed more than $19.9 billion between 2021 and 2025 and is deeply interconnected with a range of other illicit services. The sanctions also target individuals and entities tied to the network, including Thet Li, alleged to have managed the international financial network of Prince Group, a Cambodia-based company accused of large-scale crypto fraud. Hu Xiaowei, associated with the Prince Group’s financial network and a scam compound known as #8 Park, was also sanctioned.
Chainalysis said the UK’s action targets the scam ecosystem’s on- and off-ramps that enable large-scale fraud, exploiting the efficient, borderless nature of crypto rails. By blacklisting a prominent Chinese-language guarantee marketplace, the FCDO aims to disrupt commercial marketplaces that sustain scam operators through payment facilitation and marketing services.
The move highlights a growing distinction in policy between legal and illicit crypto activity. While traditional financial systems have long been exploited for money laundering and fraud—Financial Action Task Force estimates put laundering through traditional systems at 2%–5% of global GDP—Chainalysis estimates under 1% of crypto transactions are linked to illicit activity.
The UK’s sanctions follow intensified US actions targeting illicit crypto operations. Earlier this month, the US Treasury sanctioned six individuals and two entities for roles in a North Korean IT worker fraud scheme that targeted the crypto industry.
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