Investors seeking a claim to 61,896.41552945 Bitcoin (BTC) held in Britain have six months to apply to a Tianjin court proceeding after prosecutors sought confiscation of the coins.
Judges in Tianjin took up the request on Sept. 28, and a notice dated Oct. 13 began the six-month period for potential claimants to seek entry. The petition also names cash, jewelry, bank deposits, investments and additional digital assets. British authorities seized the Bitcoin, which remains in Britain.
Britain’s High Court left ownership of the coins unsettled in its Oct. 12 ruling, while holding that Chinese law would govern victims’ claims. The decision came after a separate confiscation order involving Seng Hok Ling, which likewise left investors’ claims to the broader Bitcoin pool unresolved.
Prosecutors accuse Qian Zhimin of marketing fraudulent investments from April 2014 through August 2017. They allege she departed China in July 2017 carrying a computer with Bitcoin wallet information. The filing relies on a Chinese legal procedure for handling assets linked to suspects who have left the country and cannot face trial.
People who stay outside the proceeding can still pursue repayment afterward. Once the notice window closes, the Tianjin court plans to convene a hearing.
