Bitcoin playboy who ‘made it rain’ accused of HK$3M fraud

You might remember Wong Ching-Kit, the self-styled Bitcoin ‘millionaire’ behind last month’s outlandish publicity stunt, which saw thousands of dollars rain from the sky in one of Hong Kong’s poorest neighbourhoods.

Well, four angry blockchain speculators have accused Wong of cheating them out of HK$3 million ($380K), after purchasing his special (and ultimately worthless) cryptocurrency mining machines, reports South China Morning Post.

The equipment was supposedly tailored specifically for Wong’s new cryptocurrency and were sold with promises the rigs would return a profit within three months.

Unfortunately, such a premise only holds weight if the cryptocurrency mined by the machines is worth something. Turns out, the coins are yet to be traded anywhere, rendering any coins mined completely valueless, along with the rigs.

The 💜 of EU tech

The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!

While the machines were marketed with guaranteed refunds should the new cryptocurrency project not be finished on time, investors accused Wong of repeatedly refusing to make good on those pledges.

The allegations are serious enough for Hong Kong’s Democratic Party to step in. It revealed that since October, officials had fielded over 20 complaints from spurned citizens who had bought Wong’s crypto-miners.

Police also noted that in addition to the latest allegations, nine men and one woman had previously reported being swindled out of HK$940,000 ($120K) by Wong’s business.

Last month, Wong found himself in police custody, after he took to a Kowloon rooftop to rain thousands of dollars in local currency onto a frenzied crowd of onlookers – an outlandish publicity stunt.

As a result, authorities eventually arrested Wong for disorderly conduct, later releasing him on bail. Local media reported that as of Sunday, he had not faced any charges.

Still, with evidence mounting and investigations ramping up, things aren’t looking good for this particular cryptocurrency-cowboy.