China accuses US of $14 billion Bitcoin theft: How is LuBian hack linked to 'pig butchering scam' and Chen Zhi?

China has officially accused the United States of orchestrating a scheme to steal $14 billion worth of Bitcoin, allegedly one of the largest cryptocurrency thefts in history. The claim marks the latest twist in the long-running saga of the LuBian crypto mining pool. What really happened, and how is the whole story related to the ‘pig butchering scam’ and the baby-faced crypto entrepreneur Chen Zhi? Here is what you should know.

The hack of LuBian

LuBian was a China-based Bitcoin mining pool that reportedly operated facilities in both China and Iran. In December 2020, it was hit by a major cyberattack in which an estimated 127,426 Bitcoins were stolen. According to blockchain analysts, the cryptocurrency—worth about $3.5 billion at the time—is now valued at roughly $14 billion. The attackers allegedly drained LuBian’s “hot wallets” by exploiting vulnerabilities in its private key management system and possibly using zero-day exploits. Following the breach, LuBian’s operations quickly declined, and by early 2021, the mining pool went largely offline.

China’s fresh accusation of US involvement in the LuBian hack

On Tuesday (Nov 11), the Chinese National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre (CVERC) publicly accused the US government of being behind the 2020 LuBian hack. In an official report, CVERC claimed that the operation was a “state-level theft” carried out by American intelligence agencies using advanced hacking tools similar to those used in operations such as Stuxnet—the joint US-Israeli cyberattack that targeted Iran’s nuclear programme in 2010. According to CVERC, US agencies infiltrated LuBian’s systems, stole the Bitcoin, and kept the funds dormant until 2024. That year, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) seized nearly the same amount—127,271 BTC—as part of a criminal forfeiture case linked to Cambodian businessman Chen Zhi. At the time, it was described as the largest cryptocurrency forfeiture in US history.

CVERC argued that the DOJ’s seizure was an attempt to legitimise the stolen funds, framing the move as “thieves recovering their own loot”.

Who is Chen Zhi, and what is his crime?

Chen Zhi is the founder of the Prince Group conglomerate. The US maintains that the 2024 Bitcoin seizure was lawful, as it was the wallet owned by Chen Zhi's group inside the LuBian mining pool. US court documents accused Chen Zhi of running a $6 billion global investment fraud through a company called EZ Blockchain, selling fake crypto mining equipment and laundering the proceeds. Chen is reportedly a fugitive and remains wanted by US authorities.

How the LuBian case is linked to the ‘pig butchering scams’

Investigators alleged that Chen Zhi’s operations may have overlapped with the so-called “pig butchering” scams. These are online fraud schemes in which victims are encouraged to invest in fake cryptocurrency platforms before being “slaughtered”, when their funds vanish. US prosecutors alleged that parts of Chen’s network promoted fraudulent mining investments similar to those used in pig butchering scams. They allegedly funnelled proceeds through LuBian to obscure their origins. If true, this would mean the same infrastructure tied to the LuBian hack also helped launder funds from global crypto scams across Asia, Europe and North America.

Crypto, cyberwarfare, crime and global politics: Why the LuBian case is important

The LuBian dispute highlights how cryptocurrency, geopolitics, and cyberwarfare increasingly intersect. China sees the alleged hack as part of a broader US effort to undermine its economic and technological influence, while the US portrays its actions as legitimate law enforcement against international fraud. Blockchain analysts say the wallets seized by the DOJ match those from the 2020 hack, but there is no independent evidence linking the breach to US intelligence agencies. The incident underlines how cryptocurrencies have become a new front in global power struggles.