US Treasury Sanctions 45 More Targets Tied to Prince Group

Treasury has extended its sanctions on Prince Group to the corporate network it says helped the alleged crypto-scam operator conceal assets and evade earlier sanctions, designating 45 people and companies on Nov. 5. According to Treasury's press release, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added four individuals and 41 companies.

The individuals are Qiu Yong, Zhao Mengyao, He Yujing and Visal Pang. Treasury describes Qiu as controlling British Virgin Islands and Hong Kong companies on Prince Group's behalf, and Zhao as his personal assistant and a company secretary and co-director at several of those businesses. He Yujing is the wife of previously sanctioned executive Chen Bo; Treasury says he transferred ownership of his Tokyo mansion to her after the October 2025 sanctions. Pang controls 11 Cambodian companies spanning construction, logistics, a hotel and a "super app," several co-directed with Chen Bo.

Newly listed businesses include Hong Kong lender Premium Financial Limited, Prince International Airlines and CB General Insurance. Further entities in Singapore, Mauritius and Malaysia were sanctioned for links to associate Dai An, along with a Singapore media company owned by alleged Prince Group finance chief Thet Li.

"Cyber scam syndicates continue to steal billions of dollars from American victims while relying on sophisticated international business networks to launder their illicit proceeds"

Scott Bessent

The designations follow earlier rounds on Oct. 14, 2025 and June 23, 2026, and Treasury says the newly targeted offshore companies, nominee owners and administrators helped Prince Group executives evade those measures.

Separately, OFAC designated Chui Kok Wa, a Malaysian national based in Madagascar, who Treasury says ran a scam network that used crypto to defraud Americans of more than $400,000.

What it means for crypto holders and compliance teams

None of the 45 new entries lists a digital-currency address, according to the OFAC SDN list update. The sanctions still cover the designated parties' crypto assets. US persons must block and report their property, and entities 50% or more owned by blocked persons are also blocked. Under OFAC guidance, US holders of blockable crypto must deny access and report within 10 business days, with no need to convert to dollars.

That gap matters for screening. OFAC's own guidance warns that listed addresses are "not likely to be exhaustive," so wallet matching alone will not catch exposure; ownership and entity checks are needed.

Treasury coordinated the action with the FBI, the DOJ Scam Center Strike Force, which reported $580 million in crypto seizures and freezes, and the US Attorney's Office for the District of Alaska, with help from British Virgin Islands and UK authorities. It accuses Prince Group-affiliated actors of generating billions through digital-asset investment scams, romance scams and other fraud, many using trafficked and coerced workers in Southeast Asian compounds. Prince Group has denied the allegations.

Broader pressure on the network

Enforcement is running on several tracks. The US is seeking forfeiture of about $14 billion in Bitcoin tied to Prince Group, and UK authorities froze Thet Li's London penthouse. Chen Zhi was arrested in Cambodia in January and extradited to China; Cambodia had revoked his citizenship and placed Prince Bank into liquidation. Earlier BCA coverage tracked the arrest of a Prince Group executive in Tokyo over a $15B Bitcoin scam.

The underlying problem is large. FinCEN linked about $12.7 billion in reported activity to suspected crypto investment scams in September, and UNODC estimated scam operations cost victims $88.3 billion to $114.1 billion in 2025.

With this third round, Treasury has moved past the sanctioned executives to the corporate shells and family-held assets that sit behind them.