The U.S. Treasury Department has launched a major enforcement move against the Cambodian financial firm Huione Group. This move was made due to the alleged involvement of the company in laundering billions of dollars in illicit funds. The proposal was made to block the company’s access to the American financial system due to its alleged involvement. This proposal made it through the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). This body is responsible for designating Huione as a “primary money laundering concern” under Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act. If enacted, this move will prohibit all U.S. financial institutions. That involves opening or maintaining accounts for Huione Group or any of its subsidiaries. 

A Financial Hub for Cybercrime?

According to FinCEN, the firm Huione Group has come out to be a major financial medium for cybercriminal organizations and transnational crime syndicate operations in Southeast Asia. The network is accused of crypto laundering proceeds. From online investment scams, cryptocurrency fraud, and cyber heists. Along with ties to a North Korean hacking group. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent states. Huione has become a “marketplace of choice for malicious cyber actors,” including those affiliated with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). “Today’s proposed action will sever Huione Group’s access to correspondent banking.” He further added, “degrading these groups’ ability to launder their ill-gotten gains.”

Over $4 Billion in Suspicious Transactions

Between August 2021 and January 2025, Huione allegedly did crypto laundering, as they made more than $4 billion in suspicious transactions. This suspicious transaction involves at least $37 million from a North Korea-linked cyberattack and $36 million from a “pig butchering” scam. This is a type of online fraud that manipulates victims through long-term deceptions and nearly $300 million from other illicit acts. The investigation also revealed Huione’s network includes a range of entities such as Huione Pay (a fiat payment platform) and Huione Crypto (a virtual asset service provider). Lastly, Hoawang Guarantee (a digital marketplace). These units allegedly collaborate and mask the origins of illicit funds and may have even issued a stablecoin to streamline transactions across platforms.

North Korea’s Link and Crypto Abuse

The FinCEN report especially highlighted the links between Huione and the North Korea state-sponsored hacking group called Lazarus. In one case, Huione Pay received more than $150,000 in crypto from a wallet that was associated with Lazarus between June 2023 and February 2024. While Huione Pay previously claimed that it was unaware that the funds were tied to the hacking group. FinCEN argues that the company’s weak compliance framework allowed such a transition to occur and remain unnoticed. North Korea has a long history of being accused of using crypto to evade international sanctions. The United Nations has documented how crypto offers the regime access to restricted goods and services. Through anonymous cross-border transactions, making enforcement difficult.

Weak Compliance and Regulatory Oversight

Across the Huione platform, FinCEN has noted a lack of safety and protocols, such as anti-money laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) control implementation. The investigation observed that Huione failed to even implement the basic measure. These basic measures allow any firm to monitor, detect, or report suspicious activity, which was not done by Huione. This leaves the system vulnerable to exploitation by criminal and hostile nation-states.

This shows a lack of oversight, according to the U.S. official, positioning Huione among the most dangerous unregulated financial entities currently operating in the crypto market. The proposal now enters a 30-day public consultation period. During which U.S. authorities will assess the feedback before deciding on any final ruling. If a ban is implemented on Huione, then it will be really impactful to their business globally, as more cross-border transactions rely on the U.S. dollar.

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