The main perpetrator of 50 billion illegal fundraising, Qian Zhimin, was brought to justice in the UK, and the 61,000 Bitcoin money laundering case has shocked the world!

Written by: White55, Mars Finance

On the right is Qian Zhimin, and on the left is Ling Zengxue.

A woman wearing a pink veil promised her followers three lifetimes of wealth, but fled overseas with 40.2 billion in funds, leaving 128,000 investors' lifetime savings finally hearing a guilty plea in a London court.

“I guarantee your prosperity for three lifetimes.” In October 2016, a woman seated in a wheelchair, her face covered with a pale pink veil, said only this line at the Blue Sky Ge Rui product launch event, and the atmosphere instantly erupted. Investors lifted her and the wheelchair high, as if they were venerating a deity.

On November 11, 2025, eight years later, the mysterious woman Qian Zhimin, who was once known as “Flower Flower,” was sentenced to 11 years and 8 months in prison by the Southwark Crown Court in London. She masterminded the Blue Sky Ge Rui illegal fundraising case in China, involving an amount as high as 40.2 billion yuan, and absconded to the UK with 61,000 bitcoins (valued at approximately 52.6 billion yuan at their peak), creating the largest bitcoin money laundering case in British history.

Masks and Truth

The person on the right wearing a mask is Qian Zhiming. Provided by the interviewee.

Qian Zhimin, formerly known by the aliases “Zhang Yadi” and “Huahua”, was born in 1978 in Rugao, Jiangsu. Under her packaging, she became a mysterious figure who “can connect with high-ranking government officials above and bring three generations of wealth to investors below.” She claims that her physical disability is due to a car accident, but the truth about her health has always been elusive.

In March 2014, Qian Zhimin founded Tianjin Blue Sky Ge Rui Electronic Technology Co., Ltd., promoting environmental development, smart elderly care, Bitcoin mining, and other initiatives, using zero risk and high returns as bait to attract social funds.

She meticulously built a massive financial scam. Blue Sky Ge Rui launched ten financial products including “Blue Sky No. 1” and “Profitable Coin”, promising astonishing returns of 100% to 300%.

To enhance credibility, in March 2016, Qian Zhimin even facilitated the establishment of the “smart bracelet” project of Lantian Ge Rui in the Baodi District of Tianjin City, where many local leaders attended the signing ceremony. This official endorsement greatly increased investors' trust in the company. Qian Zhimin places great emphasis on creating an aura of mystery. She always wears a pink veil or masquerade mask when meeting with investors. Only “key clients” who invest more than 6 million are qualified to hear her lecture in person, and they must surrender their phones and wear masks before the lecture.

Scams and Collapses

The judgment shows that from April 2014 to August 2017, Lantian GeRui illegally raised funds totaling approximately 40.2 billion yuan, involving 128,000 participants in the fundraising.

These funds are all controlled and managed by Qian Zhimin, of which over 34.118 billion yuan is used for rebates, over 336.7 million yuan is used for the company's daily expenditures, and the remaining huge amount of funds is used for purchasing real estate, jewelry, cars, and so on. Qian Zhimin's personal consumption has reached an astonishing level.

From 2015 to 2017, she personally purchased 331 pieces of jewelry such as jade and diamonds, totaling approximately over 167 million yuan. She also invested 1.215 million yuan with her partner Ren Jiangtao for the gilding of the Three Generations Buddha statue and the casting of multiple ritual implements.

In July 2017, Blue Sky Ge Rui stopped rebates on the grounds of upgrading its financial system, and subsequently announced a suspension of business due to financial rectification. By late July, the company had completely “collapsed.” On July 27, the Tianjin police sealed off Blue Sky Ge Rui, but at this time, Qian Zhiming had already fled abroad using a fake passport.

After the incident, the audit showed that among the funds controlled by Zhiming Youqian, over 1.14 billion yuan was used to purchase Bitcoin. She fled China using a forged Saint Kitts and Nevis passport, carrying a laptop containing a cryptocurrency wallet.

Escape and Extravagance

In September 2017, Qian Zhimin arrived in the UK with a fake passport under the name “Zhang Yadi” and began nearly seven years of a life on the run. She posted job advertisements in Chinese communities and hired a Chinese woman, Jian Wen, as her assistant, paying her a monthly salary of £4,000 to manage her daily life, translate, and handle finances.

The two rented a six-bedroom mansion in Hampstead, North London, with a monthly rent of up to £17,300, paying six months' rent in one lump sum. According to Wen Jian's confession after his arrest, Qian Zhiming spent about 20 hours a day in the bedroom on the bed, playing games, shopping, and engaging in Bitcoin trading through his laptop.

Qian Zhimin's extravagant lifestyle was further revealed at the sentencing hearing on the 10th of this month. Prosecutor Jillian Jones pointed out that after arriving in the UK, Qian Zhimin traveled extensively throughout Europe, frequently staying at high-end hotels and purchasing expensive jewelry, having once spent £120,000 to buy two luxury watches. She was very cautious in her travels, primarily opting for self-driving.

Qian Zhimin attempted to purchase a luxury house with Bitcoin.

In 2018, Qian Zhimin and Wen Jian attempted to directly purchase a luxury mansion worth £23.5 million with Bitcoin, but attracted police attention due to their inability to reasonably explain the source of their funds. This bold move ultimately became the catalyst for their downfall.

Pursuit and Plea

In October 2018, the British police raided the residences of Qian Zhimin and Wen Jian, confiscating Qian Zhimin's laptop and other digital devices, and freezing 61,000 bitcoins.

However, at that time, the British police did not arrest Qian Zhimin immediately. She took advantage of this gap to escape again, beginning nearly six years of a concealed life. Footage released by the British police showing the capture reveals that in April 2024, Qian Zhimin was apprehended in North Yorkshire, England, while she was in bed and appeared very panicked.

This arrest marks the end of a seven-year-long international manhunt. On October 21, 2024, Qian Zhiming pleaded not guilty to all money laundering charges during her first court appearance, and her lawyer claimed that she would “vigorously contest this case.”

However, nearly a year later, on September 29, 2025, at the Southwark Crown Court in London, Qian Zhiming changed his defense strategy and admitted to one count of “possession of criminal property” and one count of “transfer of criminal property” in court. In this case, Qian Zhiming's Malaysian “helper” Ling Zengxue (Seng Hok Ling), who assisted him with matters, was also sentenced to 4 years and 11 months in prison. Previously, Qian Zhiming's assistant Wen Jian had been sentenced to 6 years and 8 months in prison in March 2024 for involvement in money laundering.

Victims and Recovery of Stolen Assets

The extensive reach and profound harm of the Blue Sky Ge Rui case are shocking. Over 128,000 investors have been involved, many of whom are elderly and vulnerable groups who have lost their life savings. A victim stated in an interview that their marriage broke down due to the scam by Qian Zhiming, saying, “Now only this batch of Bitcoin can help us recover some losses.”

In December 2022, the Lantian Ge Rui case initiated the refund procedure within China, and public security organs in many parts of the country issued online registration announcements for the information of the participants in the fundraising case. However, cross-border asset recovery faces many legal and technical challenges, including complex issues such as the identification of virtual currency ownership and value conversion.

William Glover of Fieldfisher, representing over 1,000 victims, emphasized: “The frozen Bitcoin does not belong to the UK government. The UK government has no right to override the victims' legitimate legal and property interests and dispose of the frozen Bitcoin at will.”

According to the UK Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, the UK prosecution service has initiated civil recovery proceedings for the frozen assets. If the seized criminal assets are unclaimed or the claim fails, half will belong to the UK police, while the other half will be allocated to the Home Office.

On October 30, 2025, the Hedong Branch of the Tianjin Public Security Bureau issued a situation report, stating that the public security authorities are still continuing cross-border pursuit and recovery cooperation with British law enforcement agencies, making every effort to recover the losses of the participants in the fundraising. At the same time, it warned investors to be cautious of so-called “cross-border recovery agents” to avoid falling victim to scams.

The footage released by the British police shows Qian Zhimin looking panicked while being arrested in bed. The 61,000 bitcoins she brought from China to the UK are currently worth over £5.5 billion (approximately 52.6 billion RMB). Qian Zhimin's defense attorney Richard Thomas stated at the sentencing hearing that his client has been working hard to learn English in prison, “even writing poetry.” These efforts clearly cannot offset the damage she caused to 128,000 investors. Will Ryan, head of the UK police's economic and cyber crime department, commented on the case: “This case is not only one of the largest in British history but also among the top cases in terms of the amount involved globally in cryptocurrency cases.”