Track record, including unsuccessful matters

Type

Cold-wallet drain via clipboard malware

Jurisdictions

Hong Kong SAR, United States

Claimed loss

$100K – $250K

Duration

4 months

Legal strategy: On-chain tracing; exchange freezing at Coinbase; IC3 referral

Outcome: 54% recovered after the attacker attempted to cash out via Coinbase; the remaining ~46% had already been off-ramped via a peer-to-peer market. Closing report preserved the IC3 referral for future action.

Takeaway
Clipboard-hijacking malware remains a quiet but persistent theft vector, even for users who believe their setup is 'cold'. Speed from detection to exchange freezing is decisive; days-long delays collapse recovery probability.

Type

Unlicensed securities platform

Jurisdictions

Hong Kong SAR, British Virgin Islands

Claimed loss

$2M – $5M

Duration

8 months

Legal strategy: SFC complaint; Mareva injunction; BVI correspondent freezing; civil settlement

Outcome: Full recovery of the claimed amount through a combination of SFC enforcement cooperation, a Mareva injunction, and coordinated BVI asset freezing. Settlement concluded before formal trial.

Takeaway
Institutional-scale losses to HK-touching counterparties remain a strong recovery profile. SFC's enforcement cooperation materially accelerates the civil track where the platform operated without a licence in HK.

Type

Forex boiler-room fraud

Jurisdictions

United Kingdom, Cyprus

Claimed loss

$200K – $500K

Duration

7 months

Legal strategy: FCA complaint; worldwide freezing order; card-network chargeback; civil settlement

Outcome: Full recovery of claimed amount through a combination of card-network chargebacks and civil settlement against a Cyprus-registered entity after UK worldwide freezing order.

Takeaway
Card-network chargebacks executed in parallel with the civil track can materially shorten the timeline when the loss is within chargeback windows.

Type

Pig-butchering scam

Jurisdictions

United States, Cambodia

Claimed loss

$50K – $200K

Duration

5 months

Legal strategy: IC3 referral; on-chain trace to mixer; civil claim abandoned

Outcome: No recovery achieved; funds traced to Tornado Cash with no further actionable path. Closing report delivered with law-enforcement referral preserved.

Takeaway
Where funds are fully routed through sanctioned mixing services, continued civil action is not economically rational. Candid closing is part of the representation.

Type

Cryptocurrency fraud

Jurisdictions

Hong Kong SAR, Singapore

Claimed loss

$500K – $1M

Duration

9 months

Legal strategy: On-chain tracing to exchange deposit; Mareva injunction; civil settlement

Outcome: 67% of claimed amount recovered through exchange freezing and civil settlement; remainder unrecoverable due to counterparty liquidation.

Takeaway
Early engagement (within 30 days of loss) materially increased the portion of funds that remained freezable at regulated venues.

Type

Cross-border judgment enforcement

Jurisdictions

Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong SAR

Claimed loss

$1M – $2M

Duration

14 months

Legal strategy: Recognition and enforcement of AU judgment in SG and HK; asset tracing; execution

Outcome: 42% of the judgment value executed against identified assets in Singapore; a further enforcement action in Hong Kong resulted in no additional recovery; remainder formally uncollected.

Takeaway
Judgment recognition is a necessary but not sufficient condition. Where identifiable assets are depleted before enforcement, additional recovery does not follow the paper judgment.