UK chances of keeping £3.8bn bitcoin haul rise after High Court ruling

{"text":[[{"start":8.449,"text":"The British state’s chances of keeping much of a £3.8bn criminal bitcoin haul have strengthened after a judge in London ruled that thousands of Chinese fraud victims are unable to rely on English law to claim the crypto fortune."}],[{"start":22.336,"text":"The High Court in London on Monday sided with the UK authorities in an initial but crucial battle in the case over whether England’s or China’s legal rules should determine who can capture the multibillion-pound windfall."}],[{"start":35.34,"text":"The complex civil case centres on 61,000 bitcoin that London’s Metropolitan Police seized as part of an investigation into Zhimin Qian, a Chinese national who was jailed at Southwark Crown Court last year after fleeing to Britain."}],[{"start":48.722,"text":"She pleaded guilty to orchestrating a massive fraud between 2014 and 2017 against thousands of victims in China. It was the world’s largest confirmed crypto seizure by law enforcement."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":61.719,"text":"Bitcoin has since soared to £62,384 apiece and various groups of victims are fighting through the English court proceedings to stop the UK Treasury from capturing the inflated value of the cryptocurrency and benefiting from what could be a significant windfall."}],[{"start":76.701,"text":"Central to the dispute has been whether English or Chinese law should govern the victims’ claims."}],[{"start":81.975,"text":"English law has been seen as being substantially more favourable to the victims, since it could have allowed them to argue that the seized bitcoin rightfully belonged to them, not that they were merely creditors."}],[{"start":93.56,"text":"At a hearing in July, lawyers for the victims said English property laws should govern the assets given that they are held within the UK."}],[{"start":101.086,"text":"But in a judgment on Monday, Mr Justice Mark Turner agreed with lawyers for the Crown Prosecution Service that Chinese law should apply."}],[{"start":108.662,"text":"The judge said: “The relevant damage occurred in China. The applicants parted with their money in China. The alleged fraudulent representations were made in China.”"}],[{"start":119.64,"text":"He added: “The contractual relationships thereby induced were entered into in China. The immediate economic consequences of the alleged wrongdoing were likewise suffered in China.”"}],[{"start":130.02,"text":"While Turner said the preliminary decision was not about who ultimately retains the bitcoin, the ruling narrows the path for victims to claim the crypto haul."}],[{"start":138.4,"text":"The ruling does not mean the case will be heard in China. Instead, unless the judgment is overturned on appeal, the High Court in London will hear expert evidence about Chinese law that will determine the outcome of the case."}],[{"start":149.857,"text":"One victim of the fraud in China said: “It’s infuriating: they’ve made a fortune with this money, yet they only offer us meagre interest. Who wouldn’t be furious?”"}],[{"start":158.897,"text":"Prosecutors previously told the court that victims could be compensated via a redress scheme run from China."}],[{"start":165.724,"text":"The CPS said in a statement: “There will be a further hearing to determine the application of the law and if any of the victims are able to establish an interest in the bitcoin.”"}],[{"start":176.82,"text":"Law firm Fieldfisher, representing the claimants, said it was pursuing an appeal against Turner’s ruling and declined to comment further."}],[{"start":188.48,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1791878185_6377.mp3"}