A Taipei court has sentenced Shih Chi-jen, the operator of the crypto exchange BitShine, to 22 years in prison for orchestrating a massive NT$1.27 billion ($39 million) fraud and money laundering scheme. This landmark ruling represents Taiwan's heaviest crypto-related sentence to date. The criminal network collaborated with organized crime syndicates to launder over NT$2.3 billion through Tether (USDT) transfers. The sentence coincides with Taiwan's enactment of the Virtual Asset Service Act, which replaces its previous registration system with a strict licensing regime.
BitShine fraud conviction
- ▪The Shilin District Court found Shih Chi-jen guilty of running an unlicensed virtual asset service and orchestrating a criminal network that disguised illicit activities behind a registered exchange
- ▪The Shilin District Court in Taiwan convicted Shih Chi-jen, the operator of the crypto exchange BitShine, on 485 counts of aggravated fraud and money laundering
Prison sentencing outcome
- ▪The Shilin District Court sentenced Shih Chi-jen to 22 years in prison, which is Taiwan's heaviest sentence to date for cryptocurrency-linked fraud.
- ▪The Shilin District Court ordered the forfeiture of NT$43.73 million in criminal proceeds from Shih Chi-jen.
- ▪Prosecutors had sought a 25-year prison sentence for Shih Chi-jen before the Shilin District Court imposed the 22-year term.
Money laundering scheme
- ▪The BitShine criminal network laundered more than NT$2.3 billion, equivalent to approximately $71 million, between January 2024 and April 2025.
- ▪The BitShine network converted victims' cash into Tether (USDT) and transferred the digital assets to overseas wallets to obscure the movement of funds.
- ▪The BitShine operation collaborated with organized crime groups, including the Heavenly Way Alliance, the Bamboo Union, and the Thento Union.
Taiwan Virtual Asset Service Act
- ▪Taiwan's Legislative Yuan passed the Virtual Asset Service Act on June 30, 2026, establishing a comprehensive licensing framework for virtual asset service providers.
- ▪Under the Virtual Asset Service Act, unlicensed virtual asset services or illegal stablecoin issuance can carry prison terms of up to seven years and fines up to NT$100 million.
- ▪The Virtual Asset Service Act requires crypto businesses to obtain approval from the Financial Supervisory Commission and introduces stricter standards for cybersecurity and customer asset segregation.
Global crypto regulatory trends
- ▪The European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework has introduced harmonized licensing for cryptocurrency firms across Europe
- ▪Regulators globally, including those in Europe, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan, are expanding licensing requirements and transaction monitoring to reduce financial crime in the digital asset sector.
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