Binance Helps Disrupt Fiewin Scam Gaming App

Crypto exchange Binance says it’s assisted authorities in India in recovering US$47.6 million lost by victims of a scam gaming platform.

In an announcement on its website, the exchange said its Financial Intelligence Unit had provided critical intelligence to India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) that was instrumental in tracing the money laundered by operators of the Fiewin online gaming platform.

Marketed through YouTube, Facebook, and other digital channels, Fiewin was a platform where users could win money playing mini-games. It was also a “pig-butchering” scam site, according to ED.

Pig-butchering refers to a long-term fraud in which the victim’s trust is secured and they are gradually lured into making increasing payments into the scheme.

Large Criminal Network

Fiewin players were invited to bet small amounts on simple games of chance. They were even permitted to withdraw some of the winnings at first. But when deposits reached a certain threshold, players’ accounts were frozen, and their money disappeared. The system was carefully weighted to extract the most amount of money possible from the victim.

It was largely controlled by Chinese nationals, with the assistance of Indian accomplices. The agency said it has arrested four Indian nationals linked to the case.

Player funds were funneled into Indian bank accounts controlled by these individuals who converted them to crypto and sent them to wallets owned by Chinese nationals on Binance. The ED had identified three men, Huang Liangliang, Zhang Longlong, and Zheng Wenjun, as the main beneficiaries of these transactions.

Layered and Laundered

“The gains generated through the Fiewin online gaming app were then layered and laundered through various accounts to acquire movable and immovable properties,” the ED said in a statement.

Further, a substantial portion of the proceeds of crime generated in India was siphoned off by Chinese nationals using the cryptocurrency route,” the agency added. “The funds received by the Chinese nationals were layered using multiple private and exchange-based wallets.”

Binance said the case is still ongoing, and they will continue to assist the ED in tracking down the criminal network behind Fiewin.

“This case showcases the critical importance of collaboration between public institutions like the ED and private entities like Binance in addressing the new types of digital threats,” the crypto exchange added.