Hong Kong courts have postponed the hearing of the US$206 million JPEX fraud case until March.
PANews reported on December 17th that, according to Decrypt, prosecutors in the Hong Kong JPEX fraud case have been granted an adjournment until next year to prepare case files for a hearing at the Eastern Magistrates' Courts in the city on Monday. The next hearing is scheduled for March 16th, where a group of social media influencers accused of promoting JPEX and acting as "frontmen" for its over-the-counter cryptocurrency trading shops will appear in court. Seven of the eight defendants who appeared in court were granted bail under their original conditions. Those accused include lawyer-turned-influencer Lam Tsz-lam, YouTube blogger Chan Wing-yee, former TVB actor Cheng Chun-hei, and fitness instructor Chiu King-yin. Cheng Chun-hei, who did not apply for bail, will remain in custody.
In September 2023, after the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission warned JPEX of operating without a license and making misleading claims, it declared bankruptcy, and user withdrawals were frozen. Authorities stated that over 2,700 victims lost more than US$206 million (HK$1.6 billion). On November 5th of this year, police arrested and charged 16 people, including 6 core members, 7 associates of over-the-counter exchanges, and 3 holders of puppet accounts. More than 80 people were arrested during the investigation. JPEX also engaged in deceptive advertising in the Philippines and Taiwan, and three masterminds are still at large and wanted by Interpol.
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