The Hong Kong High Court recently approved the application by the Hong Kong Department of Justice to issue a restraining order to freeze a total of 8.93 billion Hong Kong dollars (approximately 77.6 billion Chinese yuan) in assets belonging to Prince Group founder Chen Zhi and others, as well as related companies. This includes bank deposits, securities accounts, stocks, and properties.
According to a recent disclosure by “Hong Kong 01,” the Hong Kong Department of Justice had previously filed an application in the High Court to issue restraining orders against Chen Zhi, Zhou Yun, Li Tian, Hu Xiaowei (also known as Hu Yanming, Chen Xiao’er), and related companies. The court approved the application in May, freezing assets amounting to approximately 8.93 billion Hong Kong dollars.
Reportedly, a total of 165 bank and securities accounts have been restricted, with cash over 4.36 billion Hong Kong dollars and stocks valued at over 550 million Hong Kong dollars. Among these, Chen Zhi alone holds assets in Hong Kong exceeding 6.36 billion Hong Kong dollars, including around 2.2 billion Hong Kong dollars in deposits, a property at 68 Kimberley Road in Tsim Sha Tsui valued at around 3 billion Hong Kong dollars, and a villa at Mount Nicholson valued at around 1 billion Hong Kong dollars.
According to “Red Star News” on May 20, this restraining order application not only involves the personal assets of Chen Zhi in Hong Kong but also includes senior executives Zhou Yun, Li Tian, Hu Xiaowei, and 38 subsidiary companies of the Prince Group. Details of the restraining order also revealed that apart from holding Cambodian, Vanuatu, and Cypriot passports, Chen Zhi also holds a Hong Kong identity card.
“Hong Kong 01” stated that following the disclosure of the frozen assets, three Hong Kong-listed companies successively issued announcements stating that the relevant restraining order primarily concerns Chen Zhi’s personal assets and is not related to the group’s assets, business, or operations. The announcements also mentioned that the board of directors was not aware of any other insider information that needed to be disclosed.
“Red Star News” reported that the Hong Kong court will reconvene on August 3 to decide on the extension of the restraining order. Chen Zhi and related companies have also been instructed to disclose their financial income and details of assets in Hong Kong and overseas for the past six years to the Hong Kong Department of Justice before the expiration of the restraining order in July.
Chen Zhi is the founder of the Prince Group in Cambodia. Public reports indicate that the U.S. prosecutors previously indicted Chen Zhi on charges of telecom fraud and money laundering; U.S. and British authorities have identified the Prince Group as a transnational criminal organization, operating at least 10 fraud centers in Cambodia. In January 2026, after being arrested in Cambodia, Chen Zhi was extradited to China for investigation.
According to mainland media reports, on May 16, Cambodian law enforcement carried out a raid on Buildings A and B of the Prince Square in Phnom Penh, arresting 104 suspects involved in online fraud activities and seizing 800 mobile phones. Among them, 83 individuals are suspected of participating in online fraud activities, while the remaining are related to illegal residence.
On May 20, Epoch Times reported that a U.S. House investigation report revealed that the Prince Group was accused of operating the world’s largest fraud, human trafficking, and money laundering network. The report also mentioned that a transnational fraud network associated with the Chinese Communist Party causes American citizens to lose over a hundred billion dollars annually, and Chinese state-owned enterprises have been involved in building some fraud centers in Southeast Asia, which were later implicated in fraudulent activities targeting American citizens.