TL;DR:
- U.S. authorities restrained more than $52 million in cryptocurrency linked to Xinbi, seized two wallets holding about $12 million, and targeted 47 additional wallets.
- Investigators also seized Telegram channels where vendors allegedly advertised money laundering, scam-investment websites and recruitment services for Southeast Asian scam compounds.
- Treasury designated Xinbi a transnational criminal organization, sanctioned SafeW and Anwen, and said the marketplace processed over $24 billion in crypto and fiat since 2022.
United States authorities have restrained more than $52 million in cryptocurrency linked to Xinbi Guarantee and its vendor network, escalating a coordinated campaign against the alleged scam marketplace. The Justice Department seized two wallets containing about $12 million and sought restraints on 47 additional wallets suspected of supporting money laundering across the network. The action targets not only suspected proceeds, but the financial infrastructure that allowed the marketplace to operate at scale. A federal court also authorized the seizure of Telegram channels used to host Xinbi’s services on September 7 before the marketplace could react.
Those Telegram channels allegedly functioned as storefronts for services tied to industrial-scale scam operations in Southeast Asia. Vendors advertised money laundering, customized investment scam websites and recruitment services for scam compounds, giving criminal groups access to both financial and operational support. The marketplace appears to have served as connective infrastructure for multiple layers of illicit activity rather than a single fraud operation. Authorities credited stablecoin issuer Tether with assisting the investigation, while the Justice Department’s Scam Center Strike Force focused on disrupting the communications and payment systems that kept the network functioning across borders internationally.
Treasury Sanctions Extend The Crackdown Beyond Xinbi
In parallel, the Treasury Department designated Xinbi as a significant transnational criminal organization and sanctioned two technology providers accused of supporting its operations. Singapore-based SafeW Technology allegedly supplied an encrypted messaging application, while Cambodia-based Anwen Technology developed XinbiPay, also known as NewPay, a crypto wallet and payment application used by the marketplace. The sanctions widen the crackdown from Xinbi itself to companies accused of providing the technology and financial tools behind it. Xinbi reportedly began moving its merchant and money-laundering networks to SafeW around June 2025 as law-enforcement scrutiny intensified during a widening enforcement campaign.
The Treasury said Xinbi has processed more than $24 billion in cryptocurrency and fiat since around 2022, primarily through Southeast Asia, and that its platform has been used by North Korean hackers and entities connected to the sanctioned Prince Group. The latest measures combine wallet restraints, platform seizures and sanctions in an effort to isolate Xinbi from both money and communications. U.S. sanctions block Xinbi’s property and interests under American jurisdiction and generally prohibit U.S. persons from transacting with designated entities. The campaign follows British sanctions imposed on Xinbi on March 26 across multiple jurisdictions.
