Cambodian Huione Raises $98 Billion in Cryptocurrency, Sparks US Crackdown: Elliptic
Oliver Knight | Edited by Sheldon Rebeck Updated May 2, 2025, 7:22 PM Published May 2, 2025, 3:50 PM
Cambodian conglomerate Huione Group, which the US Treasury Department is seeking to exclude from the country’s financial system, has raised $98 billion in cryptocurrency through illicit schemes such as money laundering, price manipulation and online fraud since 2014, according to blockchain security firm Elliptic.
An organization with ties to the Asian nation’s ruling Hong family runs a Telegram-based marketplace where users can buy personal data, money laundering services and even electric shackles to use against people.
“Huione Group has come under increased scrutiny this week, with the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) designating the Cambodian conglomerate as an entity of significant money laundering concern,” Elliptic co-founder Tom Robinson told CoinDesk.
In January, the company introduced its own stablecoin, which, unlike third-party assets such as USDT Tether, cannot be frozen by external entities. The USDH stablecoin was created to “bypass restrictions on the transfer of traditional digital currencies.”
Despite the stablecoin’s launch, Robinson noted that FinCEN’s moves to tighten controls on Huione are a “major blow” to the conglomerate.
“This should serve as a signal to the entire financial ecosystem and encourage it to step up its efforts to detect and disrupt transnational money laundering networks,” he added.
According to a report by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future, Huione also received $150,000 worth of cryptocurrency from the North Korean hacker group Lazarus, which stole around $3 billion worth of cryptocurrency between 2018 and 2024.
An attempt to contact the company via email was unsuccessful at the time of publication.
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