According to Authorities in Hong Kong, Hounax, an unlicensed cryptocurrency exchange, allegedly scammed 145 users, resulting in $18.9 million (148 million HKD) in lost funds.
To apprise the Hounax platform of the allegations, local law enforcement conducted an initial press conference on November 25. According to the Hong Kong Securities Regulatory Commission (SFC), they have received 18 complaints regarding exchanges ranging from 12,000 HKD to 10 million HDK ($1,539-$1.2 million) as of the 27th.
Local police report that Hounax was a licensed platform collaborating with legitimate financial institutions. However, the SFC labeled it a suspicious platform on November 1 and warned users about its dangers.
Hounax purportedly acquired local clients by asserting that the initial technical team of Coinbase established it, possessed a license issued by Canadian authorities, and solicited investments from prominent investors such as Sequoia Capital and IDG Capital.
According to Ke Yongn, the chief investigator of the Commercial Crime Investigation Section of the Hong Kong Police, the platform also recruited victims through social media. However, the official Facebook page of the platform is no longer accessible, as stated in the report.
Hounax, JPEX, Hong Kong Digital Research Institute, BitCuped, FUBT, futubit/futu-pro, EFSPD, OSL trading, and arrano. network are among the nine crypto investment platforms that the SFC presently identifies as suspicious.
This incident occurred after a significant scandal involving the Hong Kong JPEX exchange earlier this year. After receiving over 2,000 complaints from JPEX users, local authorities ultimately documented losses estimated at approximately $180 million. There have thus far been sixty-six arrests in connection with the scandal.
To avert another industry catastrophe, local regulators in Hong Kong have tightened crypto regulations in response to these occurrences. Regulators have stated that a year-long grace period for cryptocurrency exchanges will remain in effect.