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Li Thet, executive director of Hong Kong-listed FSM Holdings, resigned after US authorities linked him to an alleged Cambodian cyber-scam operation. The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Li for alleged criminal involvement with what it called the Prince Group transnational criminal organisation (TCO), which it and UK authorities said was involved in online scams, human trafficking and money laundering. Prince Holding Group, led by a Chinese-born businessman Chen Zhi, was the outward-facing corporate identity of the TCO, according to the OFAC. Li resigned from all positions at FSM Holdings, including executive director, board chairman and nomination committee chairman, effective October 21, the company said in a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday. FSM Holdings immediately initiated an internal assessment and took steps to ensure full compliance with applicable laws and regulations upon learning of the US Treasury Department’s announcement, it said. “The company is currently seeking professional advice to assess and address the situation and will make further announcements as and when appropriate,” it added. Li, also known as Li Tian in Chinese, was born on July 6, 1987, in Beijing and held both Chinese nationality and Cambodian citizenship, as well as a Vanuatu passport, the OFAC said. The US on October 14 sanctioned a network of more than 115 businesses it said were affiliated with the Prince Group TCO, 11 of which are registered in Hong Kong. Most are offshore shell firms registered in foreign jurisdictions that do not conduct real commercial activities. FSM Holdings itself was not included on the sanctions list. Listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange since 2018, FSM operates in precision sheet metal engineering and online mobile game development. The company was incorporated in the Cayman Islands as an exempted company with limited liability in 2018. Its shares closed at HK$0.435 with nearly zero turnover on Tuesday, giving the company a market valuation of HK$435 million. Its unaudited loss widened to US$3.97 million in the first half of this year from US$413,000 in the same period last year, according to its earnings results. FSM Holdings said market risks such as fluctuations in foreign exchange and interest rates, as well as credit and liquidity risk, could pose threats to its businesses. The company’s board now comprises sole executive director Wong Yet Lian. Prince Holding Group is registered as a multinational conglomerate headquartered in Cambodia, with investments in entertainment, finance and real estate. According to US and UK authorities, the group conducts large-scale criminal activities including cyber fraud, human trafficking, forced labour, online scam compounds and money laundering across several countries. The US and UK have described their action against the group as their largest-ever law-enforcement action targeting cybercriminal networks in Southeast Asia. Earlier in October, US and UK authorities seized over US$14 billion in bitcoin and luxury assets linked to Chen and froze property connected to his network across multiple countries. The 38-year-old was named on the US sanction list along with Li. Chen has operations in Hong Kong, and a related company owns an office building in the city, the Post has found. He was indicted on October 8 in a US federal court on charges of wire fraud conspiracy and money-laundering conspiracy.
