Interpol Issues Red Notice For Crypto Influencers Linked To JPEX $200 Million Collapse
Two crypto influencers from Hong Kong are now on the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol)’s Wanted List. The addition to the list comes after Hong Kong police requested a Red Notice from the international organization.
The two men are being charged with theft, fraud, and money laundering and have been previously arrested for their links to the now-collapsed crypto exchange JPEX.
Crypto Influencers On Interpol’s Wanted List
This week, local reports revealed that 30-year-old crypto influencer Wong Ching Kit, also known online as ‘Coin Young Master’, was added to Interpol’s Wanted list alongside Mok Tsun Ting, his 26-year-old accomplice.
Interpol issued the Red Notice on Wednesday following a request from the police, which now puts the two men among the 8 people on the list wanted by Hong Kong authorities.
According to Interpol’s website, Wong is being charged with one count of fraud and two counts of theft in Hong Kong, while Mok is requested for two money laundering charges.
In 2018, Wong rose to fame after pulling a stunt in the Sham Shui Po area. The influencer threw KH$ 6,000, worth nearly $800, from a building rooftop, causing a frenzy on the street. The sunt resulted in an arrest for being a suspect of “disorderly conduct in public,” but he was later released on bail.
Moreover, the crypto influencers have been involved in fraud allegations since 2019. The local police arrested Wong for a second time for “conspiracy to defraud investors” after being accused of allegedly promoting a crypto mining machine.
Seemingly, the “Coin Young Master” made numerous false claims at seminars and on social media in order to adverstise the machine. Over a dozen people were reported to have lost HK$3 million, worth around $385,000. Wong was also arrested for conspiracy to defraud, and Mok was arrested as a co-conspirator.
Involvement With JPEX Exchange
Last year, the crypto influencers made the headlines for their involvement with the now-collapsed exchange JPEX. Wong was one of the influencers who promoted the crypto exchange.
JPEX was a crypto trading platform that operated in Hong Kong since 2020. Nearly a year ago, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) warned investors that the exchange’s claims of being “a licensed and recognized platform to facilitate the trading of digital asset and virtual currency” were false.
The financial authority also stated that influencers promoted the platform under pretenses and informed us that it had received several complaints about the exchange. The SFC revealed that several retail investors were unable to withdraw their cryptocurrencies from JPEX or have found their balances altered.
The regulatory institution requested Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) to stop promoting the crypto exchange. As a result, Wong deleted all his YouTube videos promoting the platform and stopped promoting it.
However, Mok was arrested in September for his suspected connection with the fraudulent crypto exchange but was later released on bail. As reported by Bitcoinist, former lawyer and influencer Joseph Lam was also arrested by the Hong Kong police for his link with JPEX.
The exchange’s collapse considered the largest fraud case in Hong Kong to date, stole approximately $200 million from over 2,000 victims. As of this writing, 73 people have been arrested for their links to the crypto platform.
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Cardano Moves One Huge Step Closer To Game-Changing Chang Hard Fork After Latest Node Release
The Cardano network has inched closer to the final phase of a multiyear program to become a fully decentralized blockchain ecosystem. This milestone comes after the latest release of a major node validator software, which is the final development step needed to trigger the highly-awaited Chang hard fork.
The Dawn Of The Voltaire Era
The Cardano development team released Node 9.1.0, the newest version of the Cardano validator node software, on July 25. Node 9.1.0, which is an upgrade of Node 9.0 previously released on July 8, prepares the network for the Chang hard fork.
Node 9.1.0 is here!
— Intersect (@IntersectMBO) July 25, 2024
The final version to bring on-chain decision making to Cardano is here. As with all hard-forks, Cardano upgrades when the community is ready.
SPO'shttps://t.co/UwgSE0dWc0
DApps, wallets, exchanges & more get #ReadyforChang
As a first step, the validating node software operated by the system’s stake pool operators needs to be upgraded to the latest version. Then, the blockchain will undergo the Chang hard fork, and, in doing so, enter the Voltaire era of decentralized network governance. Cardano is currently in its Basho phase.
For the hard fork to be executed, 70% of validators will vote to upgrade to the new software. Validators are upgrading swiftly, with 13% installing the new node as of publication time. Besides incorporating some bug fixes and enhancements, node 9.1.0 requires the use of the Conway Genesis file on the mainnet, which will facilitate the move to the Chang fork.
Chang Promises Significant Transformation Of Cardano Ecosystem
The Chang hard fork, initially slated for the first half of 2024, aims to enhance the infrastructure and capabilities of the Cardano blockchain dramatically.
Chang is the first step in giving Cardano fully decentralized governance. Once the switch is complete, the seven-year-old blockchain network will no longer be actively run by Cardano development firm IOG but will instead be completely managed by community members.
Eventually, Chang will allow the introduction of Delegate Representatives (DReps), who Cardano tokenholders will vote in. These representatives will draft a Cardano Constitution, which will become the main governing law of the network. After a constitution is formulated and approved, DReps will continue to propose changes to the network per this constitution.
ADA tokens are up 2% in the past 24 hours, CoinGecko data shows. Be it as it may, Cardano enthusiasts are anticipating a meteoric price rally in the same mold as the Alonzo hard fork from 2021, which propelled ADA to its current lifetime high of $3.09 in September of that year.
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