131 scammed out of HK$110mn in "crypto fraud"
Police on Saturday accused the cryptocurrency platform, Hounax, of defrauding at least 131 people out of more than HK$110 million. Speaking at a media briefing, Superintendent Rick Chan from the Intelligence and Support Division said scammers had enticed people with promises of high returns on investments in a cryptocurrency exchange, but the investors were unable to recoup their capital. Chan said police are still investigating, and will make arrests soon. "We have already asked social media platforms to remove Hounax from their sites. We are still waiting for their reply. We've also asked telecommunications service providers to block related suspicious hyperlinks...I believe that there will be an arrest operation soon." said Chan. Earlier this month, the Securities and Futures Commission flagged Hounax as a suspicious virtual asset trading platform, and included it in an alert list.  The regulator said Hounax had falsely claimed to be working with a financial institution and a venture capital firm.