A Hong Kong court has granted bail to influencer Joseph Lam and at least 13 others in the alleged HK$1.6 billion scandal surrounding cryptocurrency trading platform JPEX, the city’s largest crypto fraud case to date.
Lam is the most well-known figure among the group of eight people, including social media influencers and an ex-actor, who appeared in the Eastern Magistrate’s Court on Thursday under police custody.
The group faces a raft of charges, including conspiracy to defraud, fraudulently or recklessly inducing others to invest in virtual assets, and money laundering, over the alleged fraud scheme linked to JPEX.
The eight are among 16 people police said had been charged on Wednesday, more than two years since police began investigating JPEX and made the first arrests in September 2023.
Lam, a barrister-turned-insurance agent-turned-crypto influencer, is accused of committing fraud and faces an alternative charge of fraudulently or recklessly inducing others to invest in virtual assets.
The 35-year-old allegedly tricked people into investing in JPEX with false claims, including that the platform had obtained licences in multiple jurisdictions and that he had exclusive information about the platform, between July and September 2023.
Lam arrived at the court in Thursday morning in a police vehicle. He was represented by Senior Counsel Cheng Huan in Thursday’s hearing.
The rest of the group of eight included Chan Wing-yee, 38, a YouTuber better known as “Chan Yee,” former Television Broadcasts (TVB) artist Cheng Chun-hei, 31, as well as a number of over-the-counter trading house operators and influencers.
Prosecutors said they would apply for the eight to be committed to the High Court for trial, where they would face stiffer penalties than at the magistrate court, and asked for a committal hearing to be scheduled for December 15.
Magistrate Ko Wai-hung approved the date and granted bail to seven defendants, including Lam and Chan, on conditions that included surrendering their travel documents and regularly reporting to a designated police station. Lam and Chan also each agreed to pay HK$300,000 in cash for the court bail.
Cheng was denied bail and was remanded in custody. The rest agreed to cash payment ranging from HK$50,000 to HK$100,000 and the other conditions in exchange for bail.
Apart from the eight, seven people also appeared before the magistrate on Thursday to face charges relating to JPEX. The remaining person among the 16 that were charged, Tang Lap-shun, had already been brought to court before Thursday, police told HKFP at court.
Six face money laundering charges over allegedly using their bank accounts to handle criminal proceeds, while one is accused of perverting the course of justice for allegedly destroying evidence related to JPEX.
The seven were all granted bail on cash payments ranging from HK$20,000 to HK$100,000. They also had to surrender their passports and regularly report to police.
The JPEX scandal emerged in September 2023 after the Securities and Futures Commission accused the platform of being “suspicious” and declared it unregulated. Police intervened and 80 people have been arrested in connection with JPEX since then.
Police said on Wednesday that, apart from the 16 people already charged, the other arrested individuals remained under investigation.
Interpol has also issued a Red Notice for three men believed to be key players in the JPEX case who have fled the city – Mok Tsun-ting, 27, Cheung Chon-cheng, 30, and Kwok Ho-lun, 28 – police said.
More than 2,700 people have reported being victims of JPEX, with total losses exceeding HK$1.6 billion, according to the authorities.
The JPEX case has cast a shadow over Hong Kong’s embrace of digital assets and revealed regulatory gaps just months after the city rolled out rules requiring crypto exchanges to be licensed and meet investor protection standards.
