Former senior manager at Huobi accused of illicit trading: FT

A former senior manager at Huobi, the crypto exchange, reportedly faces accusations that he secretly made $5 million by trading against an account that he controlled.

According to a Financial Times report published this morning, Huobi has filed a civil lawsuit against Chen Boliang, a former senior manager looking after institutional clients at the company in Hong Kong.

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He is accused of setting up a retail trading account in his father’s name and extending it a $20 million credit line from the exchange, before trading against it with another corporate account that he controlled, netting some $5 million in profits denominated in USDC.

The trades allegedly took place in February and March 2020. Boliang was reportedly arrested in May 2020 and charged with “accessing Huobi’s computer systems with criminal or dishonest intent and dealing with the proceeds of a crime,” per the report. He is currently out on a $25,000 bail.

In a statement provided to the FT, a Huobi spokesperson said: “Mr Boliang Chen’s employment with Huobi Global was terminated in May 2020. We have no further comments pertaining to the charges against Mr Boliang Chen and believe in the administration of justice by the HK Special Administrative Region.” An attorney for Boliang did not respond to the FT’s request for comment.

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About Author

Ryan Weeks is deals editor at the The Block, focused on fundraising, M&A and institutional trends in the crypto space, among other things. He is particularly interested in investigative work — so please send tips! Ryan previously worked at Financial News, Dow Jones as a fintech correspondent in London. Prior to that, he wrote for several different publications, including Sifted, AltFi and Wired. Beyond journalism, Ryan is a keen reader and writer. He enjoys all things active, especially running, rugby, climbing and tennis.