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New challenges will test Pokemon trainers’ reactions in their virtual beast battles, as the near-30-year-old saga’s latest instalment hits Nintendo consoles on Thursday.”Pokemon Legends: Z-A” will for the first time play out its matchups in real time, rather than the turn-by-turn play of previous titles going back to 1996.Set in a vast city inspired by Paris, with landmarks recalling the Eiffel Tower or Arc de Triomphe, players will have to time their attacks or dodge incoming blows as their stable of fantasy creatures does battle in the arena.The breath of fresh air is likely to be welcomed by fans and critics, who have complained of a lack of new ideas in Pokemon releases of recent years.”Legends: Z-A” has been developed by Japanese studio Game Freak, the outfit that first brought the world of Pokemon to life.Published by console giant Nintendo and The Pokemon Company, the new title is part of the “Legends” spin-off series that kicked off with “Arceus” in 2022.Players can dive into “Legends: Z-A” on both the original Switch console and its Switch 2 successor.Gameplay unfolds around the city setting in a familiar competition format, with players scaling the ladder towards creature-training glory.Almost 490 million copies of Pokemon games for console and mobile devices have been sold in the series’ near-three-decade history, according to figures from The Pokemon Company.Originally inspired by Japan’s summer tradition of insect gathering, the games centre on capturing and training “pocket monsters” resembling creatures from mice to dragons.The beasts’ often-cute appearance belies their fearsome powers, which players can deploy in battles against other trainers.Characters from Pokemon games have been spun off into films, animated series and a plethora of merchandise.The franchise racked up $12 billion in licensing revenue in 2024, according to specialist publication License Global — or more than toy giant Mattel.

Stocks jumped and the dollar retreated Wednesday as trade war fears were overshadowed by comments from Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell that suggested the bank would cut interest rates again this month.After a volatile couple of days characterised by a fresh flare-up in China-US tensions, investors took the opportunity to jump back into the market and resume a months-long, tech-fuelled rally.Powell has for most of the year walked a fine line between trying to keep a cap on US inflation while also supporting the labour market, even as he faced a barrage of abuse from President Donald Trump for not lowering borrowing costs soon enough.And while price gains continue to outpace the bank’s target pace, a series of weak readings has forced him to turn his focus on jobs, and last month announced the first rate cut since December.And on Tuesday he indicated more were on the way.”In this less dynamic and somewhat softer labour market, the downside risks to employment appear to have risen,” said Powell, adding that longer-term inflation expectations remained aligned with the Fed’s two-percent goal.”Rising downside risks to employment have shifted our assessment of the balance of risks,” he said, adding there was “no risk-free path for policy as we navigate the tension between our employment and inflation goals.”Powell also hinted that monetary policymakers could soon stop reducing the size of its holdings of bonds and other instruments bought in vast quantities during the pandemic to keep borrowing rates low and support the economy.The bank has a dual mandate from Congress to act independently to tackle both inflation and employment.No official jobs data has been published for September because of the US government shutdown, but private sector figures point to a marked slowdown in hiring last month.US markets ended mostly down but well off their morning lows, and Asia was on the front foot.Seoul soared 2.7 percent, while Hong Kong, Tokyo, Sydney, Taipei and Bangkok all climbed more than one percent.Singapore, Mumbai, Manila and Wellington also advanced.Shanghai also put on more than one percent, with little negative reaction to data showing Chinese consumer prices fell in September, indicating consumer sentiment remains weak.Paris surged more than two percent on hopes for an end to political turmoil after Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu backed the suspension of an unpopular 2023 pensions reform, while he also got support of the Socialist Party in the National Assembly.Frankfurt was on the front foot but London slipped.Expectations that borrowing rates will drop weighed on the dollar, which was well down against its peers.Powell’s remarks helped investors turn from the latest trade salvos between Washington and Beijing, with Trump last week threatening 100-percent tariffs owing to China’s new export controls on rate earths.While the US president tempered his rhetoric Sunday, China appeared to stoke the row by imposing sanctions on five American subsidiaries of South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean, accusing them of supporting Washington’s investigation into the shipping industry.Still, there are hopes the row can be defused, with Trump telling reporters at the White House that “we have a fair relationship with China, and I think it’ll be fine. And if it’s not, that’s OK too.””We have a lot of punches being thrown, and we’ve been very successful.”Meanwhile, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC that senior officials had spoken Monday on the rare earths dispute, and gave a broadly upbeat view.”We’ve been pretty successful in finding a path forward with them in the past so we think we’ll be able to work through it,” he said in an interview.- Key figures at around 0810 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.8 percent at 47,472.67 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 1.8 percent at 25,910.60 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 1.2 percent at 3,912.21 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 9,447.81 Euro/dollar: UP $1.1638 from $1.1604 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3360 from $1.3319Dollar/yen: DOWN at 151.11 yen from 151.74 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 87.12 pence from 87.13 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.1 percent at $58.62 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $62.32 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 0.4  percent at 46,270.46 (close)

Dutch tech giant ASML warned Wednesday of a steep fall in its China business next year, as it booked flat net profits in the third quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year.Traders appeared to see the glass half-full, with ASML shares opening more than three percent higher in Amsterdam, buoyed by solid sales and orders for its cutting-edge semiconductor production machines.ASML has faced growing pressure from US and Dutch export curbs for its most advanced chipmaking tools to China, as Beijing and Western nations are locked in a battle for the key sector.”We expect China customer demand, and therefore our China total net sales in 2026, to decline significantly compared to our very strong business there in 2024 and 2025,” said CEO Christophe Fouquet in a statement.The firm announced net profits of 2.13 billion euros ($2.5 billion), after 2.08 billion euros in the third quarter of last year. Net sales in the third quarter of 2025 came in at 7.5 billion euros. ASML had forecast a figure between 7.4 billion euros and 7.9 billion euros.”Our third-quarter total net sales… were in line with guidance, reflecting a good quarter for ASML,” said Fouquet.In July, the firm had warned that geopolitical and trade tensions had clouded the near-term outlook for its growth.ASML said then that it could not confirm it would be in the black in 2026.But on Wednesday, Fouquet said: “We do not expect 2026 total net sales to be below 2025,” adding that the firm would give more details on next year’s outlook in January.”I think we have seen a flow of positive news in the last few months that has helped to reduce some of the uncertainties we discussed last quarter,” said Fouquet.The CEO said he expected sales in the fourth quarter to come in between 9.2 billion and 9.8 billion euros. For the full year 2025, the firm predicts a 15-percent increase in total net sales.Net bookings, the figure most closely watched in the markets as a predictor of future performance, reached 5.4 billion euros, compared to 5.5 billion in the second quarter.According to a presentation posted on the firm’s website, sales to China represented 42 percent of ASML’s overall business in the third quarter, up from 27 percent in the second quarter.- Geopolitical battleground -Longer-term, ASML believes that the rapidly expanding AI market will push up its annual sales to between 44 billion and 60 billion euros by 2030.ASML is a critical cog in the global economy, as the semiconductors crafted with its tools power everything from smartphones to missiles. Semiconductors have become something of a global geopolitical battlefield.Washington has sought to curb exports of high-tech chips to China, worried they could be used to fuel Beijing’s military.Last week, a US Congressional committee report said five companies, including ASML, had sold $38 billion worth of critical tech to China in 2024, including to firms flagged as US national security threats.”China is striving with all its might to build a domestic, self-sufficient semiconductor manufacturing industry,” the report said.Earlier this week, chip-related tensions grew between China and the Netherlands after the Dutch government took control of Chinese-owned chipmaker Nexperia, citing national security concerns.That meant while the company — based in the Dutch city of Nijmegen — can continue production, the Dutch government can block or reverse its decisions.Parent company Wingtech said it was appealing to Chinese authorities for support and discussing legal action with international law firms.

China’s consumer prices continued to fall last month, with official data highlighting the battle leaders face in trying to kickstart domestic spending in the world’s number two economy while fighting a trade war with the United States.Beijing has spent recent years grappling with a range of issues that have weighed on growth and consumer activity, including a persistent slump in the country’s vast property market and high youth unemployment.That has been compounded by a renewed standoff with Washington since Donald Trump became US president and unleashed a tariff war on the world, with a particular eye on Beijing.The uncertainty this has fanned has made the country’s army of shoppers tighten their wallets.Figures on Wednesday showed the country’s consumer price index — a key measure of inflation — dropped 0.3 percent year-on-year in September.The reading from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) was a slight improvement on August but worse than the 0.2 percent fall forecast in a Bloomberg survey.It also comes a day after the International Monetary Fund’s latest World Economic Outlook report noted a “weakness in domestic demand” in China — echoing a broader Asian outlook dimmed by the US trade war.The IMF added that a “rebalancing” of China’s economy through fiscal measures targeting social spending and property would help battle deflationary pressure.While deflation may be appreciated by consumers, it poses a threat to the broader economy as households tend to postpone purchases in the hope of even lower prices.- Trade tensions -China’s inflation stabilisation is “fragile and volatile”, said Tianzeng Xu from the Economist Intelligence Unit in response to Wednesday’s data.”The housing market has not yet recovered and the labour market remains weak,” Xu added.And Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote in a note: “The trade tension returned and growth outlook uncertainty heightened, which is negative for demand recovery.” The NBS figures also showed the producer price index, which measures the cost of goods before they enter wholesale or distribution, fell 2.3 percent last month, in line with the Bloomberg forecast and an improvement from August.While tensions between Washington and Beijing have eased from their peak, a truce struck by the leaders earlier this year remains shaky.After months of relative calm Trump warned Friday that he would roll out an additional 100 percent tariff on the country’s goods from November 1. That came after Beijing imposed fresh controls on the export of rare earth technologies and other items. China’s commerce ministry vowed Tuesday to “fight to the end” in its trade war with Washington, if necessary.The latest salvoes came as trade figures from Beijing on Monday provided some hope for the economy, with shipments to the United States — the world’s largest consumer market — rising 8.6 percent on-month in September. Top leaders from the ruling Communist Party will convene in Beijing next week for a closely watched gathering to discuss China’s plan for the next five years, including economic and social development goals. Analysts agree that more demand-side support from policymakers would be needed to prop up the economy.Until then, there will be “little prospect of a meaningful improvement in China’s deflationary environment in the near term”, wrote Zichun Huang, China Economist at Capital Economics, in a note.

Stocks jumped Wednesday as trade war fears were overshadowed by comments from Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell that suggested the bank would cut interest rates again this month.After a volatile couple of days characterised by a fresh flare-up in China-US tensions, investors took the opportunity to jump back into the market and resume a months-long, tech-fuelled rally.Powell has for most of the year walked a fine line between trying to keep a cap on US inflation while also supporting the labour market, even as he faced a barrage of abuse from President Donald Trump for not lowering borrowing costs soon enough.And while price gains continue to outpace the bank’s target pace, a series of weak readings has forced him to turn his focus on jobs, and last month announced the first rate cut since December.And on Tuesday he indicated more were on the way.”In this less dynamic and somewhat softer labour market, the downside risks to employment appear to have risen,” said Powell, adding that longer-term inflation expectations remained aligned with the Fed’s two-percent goal.”Rising downside risks to employment have shifted our assessment of the balance of risks,” he said, adding there was “no risk-free path for policy as we navigate the tension between our employment and inflation goals.”Powell also hinted that monetary policymakers could soon stop reducing the size of its holdings of bonds and other instruments bought in vast quantities during the pandemic to keep borrowing rates low and support the economy.The bank has a dual mandate from Congress to act independently to tackle both inflation and employment.No official jobs data has been published for September because of the US government shutdown, but private sector figures point to a marked slowdown in hiring last month.US markets ended mostly down but well off their morning lows, and Asia was on the front foot.Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taipei and Seoul all climbed more than one percent, while Sydney, Seoul, Singapore and Wellington also advanced.Shanghai rose, with little negative reaction to data showing Chinese consumer prices fell in September, indicating consumer sentiment remains weak.Powell’s remarks helped investors turn from the latest trade salvos between Washington and Beijing, with Trump last week threatening 100-percent tariffs owing to Chinese rate earth measures.While the US president tempered his rhetoric Sunday, China appeared to stoke the row by imposing sanctions on five American subsidiaries of South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean, accusing them of supporting Washington’s investigation into the shipping industry.Still, there are hopes the row can be defused, with Trump telling reporters at the White House that “we have a fair relationship with China, and I think it’ll be fine. And if it’s not, that’s OK too.””We have a lot of punches being thrown, and we’ve been very successful.”Meanwhile, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC that senior officials had spoken Monday on the rare earth dispute, and gave a broadly upbeat view.”We’ve been pretty successful in finding a path forward with them in the past so we think we’ll be able to work through it,” he said in an interview.  – Key figures at around 0230 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 47,463.31 (break)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 1.5 percent at 25,826.42Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 3,881.03Euro/dollar: UP $1.1621 from $1.1604 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3348 from $1.3319Dollar/yen: DOWN at 151.17 yen from 151.74 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 87.06 pence from 87.13 penceWest Texas Intermediate: FLAT at $58.71 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: FLAT at $62.40 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 0.4  percent at 46,270.46 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,452.77 (close)

European and US stock markets fell before recovering somewhat as markets weighed trade tensions between Beijing and Washington and digested fresh Federal Reserve commentary.Wall Street indices opened firmly in the red amid the latest back and forth involving the United States and China on trade. But US stocks recovered somewhat following midday remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell.Powell’s observation that US payroll gains have “slowed sharply” strengthened confidence the US central bank would cut interest rates later this month.”In this less dynamic and somewhat softer labor market, the downside risks to employment appear to have risen,” Powell said.While two of the three major US indices still finished in the red, the broad-based S&P 500 shed just 0.2 percent at 6,644.31, about 90 points above its session low.Bourses earlier in Europe had also struggled to get out of the red, while Asian markets suffered losses following Monday’s pullback in the wake of US -China tensions.”There is a whiff of risk aversion about financial markets today,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB. “The global stock market uptrend is facing a little more resistance on the upside.”Markets were unsettled after China imposed sanctions on five American subsidiaries of South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean, accusing them of supporting a US government investigation into the shipping industry.In Europe, eyes were on embattled French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu as he presented a cost-cutting budget to a divided parliament, with parties on both ends of the political spectrum already trying to topple his government.Paris ended down just 0.2 percent but among individual shares, tire maker Michelin plunged almost nine percent after it revised downward its revenue expectations in North America where its activities have been hit by tariffs. It later recovered to close down 2.6 percent.Earlier, Tokyo slumped more than two percent as the country’s top opposition parties sought to find a unified candidate for prime minister and oust the ruling party from power after the ruling coalition collapsed last week, putting in peril Sanae Takaichi’s bid to become the country’s first woman prime minister.Back in New York, JPMorgan Chase finished down 1.9 percent despite reporting higher profits in results that topped analyst expectations. However, the bank disclosed a $170 million hit from its exposure to Tricolor, a subprime auto lending company that went bankrupt. Goldman Sachs also dropped 2.0 percent after reporting higher profits, but Citigroup jumped 3.9 percent and Wells Fargo surged 7.2 percent. – Key figures at around 2030 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.4  percent at 46,270.46 (close)New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,644.31 (close)New York – Nasdaq: DOWN 0.8 percent at 22,521.70 (close) London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,452.77 points (close)Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 7,919.62 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.6 percent at 24,236.94 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.6 percent at 46,847.32 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.7 percent at 25,441.35 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,865.23 (close)Euro/dollar: UP $1.1604 from $1.1570 on MondayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3319 from $1.3333Dollar/yen: DOWN at 151.74 yen from 152.28 yenEuro/pound: UP at 87.13 pence from 86.77 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.5 percent at $62.39 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.3 percent at $58.70 per barrel

Brazil, India, Italy and Japan vowed Tuesday to quadruple their production and consumption of renewable fuels, hoping other countries will join the pledge during UN climate talks in November.”We hope to have a good number of signatories” by COP30, Brazilian foreign ministry official Joao Marcos Paes Leme told reporters in the capital Brasilia.”Other European countries are also interested,” he added.Paes Leme was speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of representatives from 67 countries in the run up to COP30 climate talks in the Amazon city of Belem next month.The pledge involves quadrupling the production of sustainable fuels such as biofuels, hydrogen and some synthetic fuels by 2035, compared to 2024 levels.Paes Leme noted that these fuels can be used to replace planet-harming fossil fuels in sectors such as aviation, maritime transport, or the cement and steel industries.”These are sectors where decarbonization is difficult,” because electrical energy has not yet succeeded in replacing fossil fuels.Sustainable fuels are already used in these industries “but they are not produced in sufficient quantities,” he said.The massive use of coal, oil, and fossil gas for energy since the industrial revolution is the primary driver of human-induced global warming.The commitment to sustainable fuels “is something we love to hear,” said Francesco La Camera, director-general of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). However, he warned that some biofuels can be harmful due to the vast expanses of land required to produce raw materials such as sugarcane, soy, or corn. “We have to be serious about what we say: sustainable fuel also means sustainable from the perspective of land use.”For the first time, the world pledged to “transition away” from fossil fuels at COP28 in Dubai in 2023.However many of the largest fossil-fuel producing nations — including Brazil — are planning to increase production in the coming years.

US President Donald Trump slammed China’s halt of American soybean purchases as an “economically hostile act,” warning Tuesday that his country could in turn stop buying cooking oil from the world’s second-biggest economy.”We are considering terminating business with China having to do with Cooking Oil, and other elements of Trade, as retribution,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.His comments online, however, came shortly after he appeared to soothe rising temperatures between Washington and Beijing.”We have a fair relationship with China, and I think it’ll be fine. And if it’s not, that’s okay too,” Trump told reporters at the White House.Trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies have reignited in Trump’s second presidency, with tit-for-tat duties reaching triple-digit levels at one point.In an interview with the Financial Times on Monday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent slammed Beijing, accusing it of seeking to harm the global economy following China’s sweeping new export controls in the strategic field of rare earths.Trump, in turn, maintained that Washington has “to be careful with China.””I have a great relationship with President Xi (Jinping), but sometimes it gets testy, because China likes to take advantage of people,” Trump said. “Where the punches are thrown, you got to put up the blocks.”On Truth Social, Trump stressed that China’s halt in purchases was causing difficulty for US soybean farmers.US imports of animal fats, greases and processed oils, including those used cooking oil, have skyrocketed in recent years — driven by rising domestic production of biomass-based diesel, according to government data.- China tariff threat -While tensions between Washington and Beijing have de-escalated from their peak, the truce remains shaky.After Beijing imposed fresh controls on the export of rare earth technologies and items, Trump said he would roll out an additional 100-percent tariff on the country’s goods from November 1.And US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC separately that this timeline could be accelerated.”A lot depends on what the Chinese do,” Greer said in the interview, adding that Beijing had “chosen to make this major escalation.”China is the world’s leading producer of the minerals used to make magnets crucial to the auto, electronic and defense industries.Bessent told the Financial Times: “This is a sign of how weak their economy is, and they want to pull everybody else down with them.”Last week, Trump also threatened to scrap a planned meeting with Xi at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit starting later this month.China over the weekend accused the United States of “double standards” after Trump’s threat of further tariffs. On Tuesday, China said it was ready to “fight to the end” in a trade war with the United States.

Robust dealmaking activity and strong trading results helped boost US bank earnings Tuesday despite lingering worries about a softening job market and a potentially overvalued stock market.Profits rose in the third quarter at JPMorgan Chase and three other US lending giants, reflecting strength in core business areas and the still-healthy condition of many consumers even after a lengthy stretch of persistently high costs that have stretched low-income households.At JPMorgan, profits were $14.4 billion, up 12 percent from the year-ago level, with revenues of $46.4 billion, up 9 percent.The bank, the biggest US lender in terms of assets, reported somewhat higher credit costs in the quarter as it disclosed details about a $170 million hit from the bankruptcy of Tricolor, a subprime auto lender. But JPMorgan executives reiterated that consumers remain generally “resilient” and mostly on time with credit card payments, a tone echoed by other large banks. “We’ve been waiting for the so-called consumer recession, but it doesn’t materialize,” said investment banker and author Christopher Whalen of Whalen Global Advisors.The large banks “don’t do business with subprime” customers, said Whalen, who suspects more troubles involving banks’ corporate lending will surface in time. – Stock market ‘frothiness’ -More bank earnings will be released in the coming days, but Tuesday’s batch showed increases all around with Citigroup profits rising 16 percent to $3.8 billion, Goldman Sachs up 39 percent to $3.9 billion and Wells Fargo up 9 percent to $5.6 billion.Goldman Sachs pointed to its role as the “exclusive advisor” to Electronic Arts in a $55 billion deal to go private as it confidently described its merger and acquisition “pipeline” of pending and future deals. Other banks also touted strong demand for financial advisory service. But they expressed concern about weakening US job data.”While there have been some signs of a softening, particularly in job growth, the US economy generally remained resilient,” said JPMorgan chief executive Jamie Dimon.”However, there continues to be a heightened degree of uncertainty,” said Dimon, pointing to tariffs, the risk of “sticky” inflation and other factors.Executives also acknowledged concerns that sky-high equity valuations for artificial intelligence companies may be out of hand.Citigroup Chief Financial Officer Mark Mason said the stream of stock market records suggests “some frothiness in different sectors,” adding, “we’ll have to see how that ultimately evolves.”- Problem loans limited so far -Heading into the results, one overhang facing the sector was the question of exposure to a pair of recent high-profile bankruptcies.Accounts of the collapse of Texas-based Tricolor have pointed to “apparent or alleged fraud,” JPMorgan Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Barnum said on a conference call with reporters. Barnum said it can be difficult to avert all cases where a “motivated party” is committed to deception, but that the firm was looking at fortifying its controls.”This is not our finest moment,” added Dimon, who said colleagues would “scour every issue” in light of the revelations on the case.Citigroup also disclosed what it called “idiosyncratic downgrades” that more than doubled its corporate non-accrual loans compared with last year.Mason said Citi had not experienced broad problems within its portfolio, noting the bank was not exposed to Tricolor or to First Brands, a US auto supply firm whose bankruptcy has hit some other lenders, including UBS and Jefferies.”There’s no particular concentration of exposure that I’m worried about,” he said.While the damage from such examples has been limited so far, more cases of problem corporate lending could surface. Whalen said the financial system is still flush from a period of great liquidity due to central bank actions.”There’s been so much credit available,” he said. “It’s just that they haven’t gotten to the point where they’re cleaning house.”

US authorities on Tuesday unsealed an indictment against Chen Zhi, a UK-Cambodian businessman accused of running forced labor camps in Cambodia where trafficked workers carried out cryptocurrency fraud schemes that netted billions of dollars.The 37-year-old, known as Vincent, founded Prince Holding Group, a multinational conglomerate that authorities say served as a front for “one of Asia’s largest transnational criminal organizations,” according to the US Department of Justice.The Justice Department also filed the largest forfeiture action in its history, seizing approximately 127,271 Bitcoin worth around $15 billion at current prices.”Today’s action represents one of the most significant strikes ever against the global scourge of human trafficking and cyber-enabled financial fraud,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi.Chen allegedly directed operations of forced labor compounds across Cambodia where hundreds of trafficked workers were held in prison-like facilities surrounded by high walls and barbed wire.Under threat of violence, they were forced to execute so-called “pig butchering” scams — cryptocurrency investment schemes that build trust with victims over time before stealing their funds.The schemes targeted victims worldwide, causing billions in losses.Scam centers across Cambodia, Myanmar and the region use fake job ads to attract foreign nationals — many of them Chinese — to purpose-built compounds, where they are forced to carry out online fraud under threat of torture.Since around 2015, Prince Group has operated across more than 30 countries under the guise of legitimate real estate, financial services and consumer businesses, prosecutors said.Chen and top executives allegedly used political influence and bribed officials in multiple countries to protect the operation. Proceeds were laundered in part through the Prince Group’s own gambling and cryptocurrency mining operations.The stolen funds financed luxury purchases including watches, yachts, private jets, vacation homes and a Picasso painting bought at a New York auction house, authorities said.Chen faces up to 40 years in prison if convicted on wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges.In coordinated action, British authorities on Tuesday froze 19 London properties worth over £100 million linked to Chen’s network, including a £12 million mansion in North London.The sanctions also target Chen’s associate Qiu Wei Ren, a Chinese national with Cambodian, Cypriot and Hong Kong citizenship.An AFP investigation on Tuesday found that scam centers in neighboring Myanmar were expanding rapidly just months after a crackdown there. China, Thailand and Myanmar forced pro-junta Myanmar militias who protect the centers to promise to shutter the compounds in February, freeing around 7,000 people — most of them Chinese citizens.But the brutal call center-style system is flourishing again in Myanmar, now using Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite system for internet access.