Key takeaways:
- With the reported discovery of further suspected individuals by Taiwanese prosecutors, the story surrounding the collapsed JPEX keeps unfolding.
- Chang and JPEX lecturer Shih Yu-sheng were called suspects by the authorities in the investigation.
With the reported discovery of further suspected individuals by Taiwanese prosecutors, the story surrounding the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange JPEX keeps unfolding.
Chang Tung-ying, the chief partner at JPEX’s Taiwan office, has been arrested by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office (TDPO) on suspicion of fraud, according to a report on November 9 by the local TV channel TVBS News.
Taipei prosecutors summoned Chang and three other suspected individuals after they allegedly examined nine places connected to the JPEX probe.
Chang and JPEX lecturer Shih Yu-sheng, commonly known as Shi Yu, were called suspects by the authorities in the investigation due to their alleged violations of the Money Laundering Control Act and the Banking Act.
Liu Chien-fu and Niu Keng-sheng, two JPEX salespeople, were among the other freed defendants. As per the article, Niu, the registered person in charge of JPEX Taiwan, was freed after being questioned, while Liu was released on bail of 50,000 new Taiwan dollars ($1,550).
According to the article, prosecutors also called Nine Chen, a well-known Taiwanese musician and personality who had served as a brand ambassador for JPEX. Nine Chen was first called to testify as a witness, but prosecutors allegedly later identified him as a defendant.
Once a prosperous cryptocurrency exchange, JPEX abruptly stopped offering some services in the middle of September 2023, claiming that “unfair treatment” from several Hong Kong-based banks was the cause of a liquidity crisis.
The sudden collapse stoked claims that JPEX misled investors by indicating that it had submitted an application for a license to trade cryptocurrencies, among other things.
JPEX was soon at the epicenter of a significant industry scandal. After receiving over 2,000 complaints from JPEX consumers reporting losses of about $180 million, Hong Kong authorities opened an inquiry.
Financial regulators in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other nations are now very concerned about the collapse of JPEX, and several have started additional steps to shield investors from losses brought on by such events.
While the alleged masterminds are still at large, law enforcement has detained at least 11 suspected individuals in the JPEX investigation as of September 25.
