Guo Wengui, linked to Steve Bannon, was found guilty of fraud and money laundering and faces decades in prison for defrauding investors.
Guo Wengui, a Chinese industrialist associated with Steve Bannon, was convicted of nine of the twelve criminal counts, which included fraud, racketeering, and money laundering.
The “demise of Guo’s schemes” was announced by US Attorney Damian Williams in a statement that was published today, July 17.
Guo had defrauded investors to finance his lifestyle, which included a yacht valued at $37 million. Williams ultimately ensured that Guo would “face decades in prison.”
Guo has been incarcerated since his detention in March 2023 and is scheduled to be sentenced on November 19.
The primary foundation of Guo’s relationship with Bannon is their co-founding of GTV Media Group, which owned GTV, a video-sharing platform.
Bannon was a former investment banker, political strategist, and media executive from the United States who served as the chief strategist of the White House during the administration of former President Donald Trump.
The “We Build the Wall” crowdfunding initiative, which was designed to construct a border wall between the United States and Mexico, was the subject of Bannon’s arrest in 2020 on Guo’s yacht for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Bannon is currently incarcerated for four months for contempt of Congress in connection with his involvement in organizing demonstrators to assemble in Washington, DC on January 6, 2021. Trump pardoned Bannon shortly before his departure from office.
Guo’s ventures into the cryptocurrency market successfully secured millions of dollars in investment for a token he referred to as “Himalaya Coin” or H-Coin (HCN), which he asserted was 20% guaranteed by gold. Himalaya Exchange was the primary outlet for the sale of this coin.
The SEC observed that Guo was a “serial fraudster” who exploited the allure of crypto to convince retail investors to raise as much as $500 million.
According to a recent statement from Jesse Brown, the former CEO of Himalaya Exchange, H-Coin was never onchain or even qualified as a crypto product.
The purchasing system of the Himalaya Coin is described as being based on user credit in a section on “structural considerations” on page 10 of the Himalaya Coin whitepaper.
Investors are obligated to purchase these credits through the native stablecoin of Himalaya Exchange, the Himalaya Dollar.
Onchain addresses were not provided for either the stablecoin or Himalaya Coin, nor were any standard disclosures made regarding their smart contract functionalities.
This development occurs at a critical juncture in the lead-up to the 2024 elections, as Trump is the dominant candidate, as evidenced by his substantial odds advantage on Polymarket.
The assassination attempt that occurred last weekend significantly increased Trump’s popularity, as industry analysts and supporters perceive that his campaign is gradually altering its stance on cryptocurrency.
