Gate News reports that on March 17, a dispute involving approximately 2,323 Bitcoins drew attention in the UK. British businessman Ping Fai Yuen accused his separated wife Li Fenyong of stealing hardware wallet seed phrases through home surveillance devices and transferring assets worth about $172 million. The case is now in judicial proceedings.
According to documents filed with the High Court of England and Wales, the involved assets were originally stored in a Trezor hardware wallet protected by a PIN and a 24-word seed phrase. The allegations state that Li Fenyong secretly installed cameras in their Brighton residence, recording the victim entering the seed phrase. In August 2023, these Bitcoins were transferred to 71 addresses, with no further on-chain movements since then.
Court documents also reveal that Ping Fai Yuen had installed recording devices at home, capturing discussions about fund transfer methods and ways to evade financial regulations. In December 2023, police arrested the suspect and seized multiple cold wallets and recovery seeds.
Legally, the court dismissed the charge of “tangible property embezzlement,” but the case continues to proceed on grounds of unjust enrichment and trust responsibilities. The judge indicated that the plaintiff has a high likelihood of winning and has issued an injunction to restrict further circulation of the involved Bitcoins. The defendant denies all allegations, and the case is still under review.
Notably, CZ commented on social platform X, pointing out that this incident highlights potential vulnerabilities in the “self-custody” model of crypto assets, especially when private keys or seed phrases are physically obtained, which can completely compromise security.
This event also serves as a reminder to market participants that, despite decentralized storage emphasizing user control over assets, in practice, protecting private keys, device isolation, and physical security are equally critical. As the value of digital assets like Bitcoin continues to rise, risks related to seed phrase leaks and cold wallet security remain a growing concern.
Disclaimer: The information on this page may come from third parties and does not represent the views or opinions of Gate. The content displayed on this page is for reference only and does not constitute any financial, investment, or legal advice. Gate does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information and shall not be liable for any losses arising from the use of this information. Virtual asset investments carry high risks and are subject to significant price volatility. You may lose all of your invested principal. Please fully understand the relevant risks and make prudent decisions based on your own financial situation and risk tolerance. For details, please refer to
Disclaimer.
Related Articles
BTC fell below 77000 USDT
Gate News bot message, Gate quotes show that BTC fell below 77000 USDT, trading at 76961.6 USDT.
CryptoRadar5m ago
NYSE Welcomes Morgan Stanley’s MSBT Launch as First Spot Bitcoin ETF Issued by a Major US Bank
Bank-backed bitcoin ETFs are accelerating institutional adoption and strengthening market credibility. The NYSE marked a new milestone as Morgan Stanley Investment Management rang the closing bell and celebrated the launch of MSBT, which the NYSE described as the first spot bitcoin ETF by a major
Coinpedia3h ago
BTC falls 0.49% in 15 minutes: fragile long leverage and active sell-off pressure resonate to weigh on the short term
From 18:00 to 18:15 (UTC) on 2026-04-17, the BTC price fluctuated and trended downward within the 77097.4 to 77573.2 USDT range. Over these 15 minutes, the return rate recorded -0.49%, and the amplitude reached 0.61%. During this period, market trading was active; short-term volatility was amplified, and trading attention increased significantly. The main driver behind this abnormal move is that the overall leverage structure is bearish and long positions are fragile. At present, the BTC perpetual contract funding rate has remained negative for 11 consecutive days, indicating that the bears have the upper hand in the market. In addition, futures open interest (OI) is about 628.3 billion USDT, which is at a historical high. During the anomaly window, trading volume increased noticeably. On-chain data shows large amounts of BTC flowing from long-term holder addresses to exchanges, suggesting that active sell orders may have triggered longs to passively reduce positions, amplifying downward price pressure. Moreover, institutional positioning enthusiasm in the mainstream contract market has cooled off; liquidity boundaries have tightened, causing large-trade activity to have an amplified effect on market volatility. In the options market, implied volatility rose to 39.81%, increasing demand for downside protection and reflecting a defensive posture among market participants. Macro-environment volatility and some capital flowing into safe-haven assets, together with the recent regulatory uncertainty-related historical events, reinforced the move, pushing overall market risk appetite lower. Current BTC leverage risks still remain. If, in the future, there are concentrated sell-offs, volatility may be further amplified. It is recommended to continue monitoring sustained high OI levels, the persistence of negative funding rates, and on-chain transfers of large amounts of funds, and to stay alert for whale behavior and any disruptions to market sentiment caused by macro-policy developments. For subsequent price action, please watch key support levels, institutional and whale on-chain moves, and relevant global market news, and guard against short-term risks.
GateNews5h ago
Bitcoin Liquidations Hit $815M as BTC Surges Above $78K Amid Iran Strait Opening
Over $815 million in leveraged cryptocurrency positions were liquidated recently, mainly due to short positions against Bitcoin. Markets improved as Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz and Trump hinted at a deal with Iran, boosting Bitcoin prices significantly.
GateNews5h ago
Cardano Founder Hoskinson Warns BIP-361 Could Freeze 1.7M Bitcoin
Charles Hoskinson warned that Bitcoin's BIP-361 upgrade, meant to address quantum threats, is wrongly classified as a soft fork. It could freeze 1.7 million BTC, including 1 million from Satoshi Nakamoto, as early coin owners can't prove ownership.
GateNews6h ago
