ACE Exchange Founder Arrested for Fraud

Taiwan-based cryptocurrency exchange ACE Exchange has just been arrested by police and confiscated assets worth $6.4 million in a notable scandal. Information from Liberty Times on January 4 revealed that this incident involved the arrest of founder David Pan and 13 other suspects, all charged with fraud.

ACE, one of Taiwan's largest cryptocurrency exchanges, was investigated by the criminal police for suspected fraud. The reason was for promoting shitcoins. A total of 14 people were arrested by the police, and the amount of fraud exceeded NT$1 billion. https://t.co/NYCkg1S49X

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) January 4, 2024

Pan and Lin, another co-conspirator, allegedly conspired for three years to spread false information about ACE’s platform to attract investments in cryptocurrencies, especially MOCT. Police conducted raids at multiple locations in Taiwan, including the headquarters of ACE Exchange, and seized NT$111.52 million (equivalent to $3.6 million) in cash from Lin. In total, more than NT$200 million (US$6.4 million) in illegal assets were confiscated.

A spokesperson for ACE Exchange confirmed that the arrested person is not an ACE employee. He added that although David Pan is the founder of ACE Exchange, has not participated in any activities of the ACE exchange since 2022. ACE Exchange is cooperating with Taiwan police but under How to be a witness.

各位可能有看到新聞了。 ACE 在這邊澄清該行為是代幣項目方行為，跟交易所營運沒關聯。目前營運都正常，如有遇到提幣問題 可以透過我們官方渠道詢問

【ACE王牌法幣加密貨幣交易所聲明稿】https://t.co/VnoekKpWL2

— ACE Exchange (@ACE_exchange) January 4, 2024

Related: Hong Kong to tighten crypto regulation in wake of JPEX fraud case

After this incident, ACE Exchange announced that it would remove the MOCT token on January 8, and also allow users to exchange this token for dining or hotel vouchers to mitigate the impact on the community. ACE Exchange, launched in 2018, was previously known as one of the major cryptocurrency exchanges in Taiwan.

This event occurs in a context where the cryptocurrency community is facing global regulatory pressure. In addition, other scandals such as rumors about CoinDCX being investigated by Delhi Police and the wanted of Lee Jeong-hoon – former Chairman of Bithumb in South Korea, all pose legal challenges and increase tension in the cryptocurrency market community.