Counsel: New Rule of Criminal Cases Re-activated in 2026 Bureau

Submitted by: Liu Yann Bing

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ALONG WITH THE 2026 GUILTY PLEAS TO REFINE THE NEW RULES OF THE LENIENCY SYSTEM, THE CIRCULAR OF THE EIGHT CENTRAL BANKS ON FURTHER PREVENTION AND DISPOSAL OF ASSOCIATED RISKS SUCH AS VIRTUAL CURRENCY (2026) 42) THE GLOBAL TIGHTENING OF THE THRESHOLD OF ILLEGAL FINANCIAL REGULATION OF VIRTUAL CURRENCY REPRESENTS A REAL CHANGE IN THE CRIMINAL DEFENCE OF THE AUTHOR, WITH CRIMINAL CASES INVOLVING VIRTUAL CURRENCY ENTERING A COMPLETELY NEW STAGE OF JUSTICE, ONE THAT IS STRICT, BROAD AND PRE-EMPTIVE. THE NEW RULES, WHICH AMEND THE ORIGINAL RULES OF JURISPRUDENCE FROM THE VOLUNTARY REVIEW OF GUILTY PLEAS, BROAD-SCALE RANKINGS, RECOVERY OF PROCEEDS OF CRIME, DIFFERENTIATED SENTENCES FOR PRINCIPAL ACCOMPLICES, AND THE FIVE DIMENSIONS OF THE BACK-TO-BACK DISCIPLINARY MECHANISM, DIRECTLY ALTER THE REASONING AND FINAL SENTENCING RESULTS OF HIGH-FREQUENCY MONEY-RING CASES, SUCH AS ILLEGAL OPERATIONS, MONEY-LAUNDERING, LETTERS OF ASSIST, OTC RUNS, COIN-ISSUE FINANCING, ETC., AND MAKE MORE PRECISE REQUIREMENTS FOR DEFENCE IN CURRENCY-RING CRIMINAL CASES, ESPECIALLY AFTER A GUILTY PLEA。

I. The core points of the 2026 pleas in the context of the Currency Circle case

This revision of the system of guilty pleas is based on the past seven years of judicial practice, with the highest law and the highest scrutiny, together with the applicable rules, focusing on the financial category, the optimization of cyber-chain crimes and the high degree of compatibility with the characteristics of currency-ring cases, with the core changes being concentrated onFive areas:

The first is the substantiveization of the conviction and the recovery of damages as a new rule of the mandatory elements of the sanction。Breaking the expansive criterion of “accusations of oral guilt can lead to the signing of a closing letter”, the author considers that a future explicit and sincere confession = a statement of the true origin of assets in the chain + a proportionate refund of the proceeds of the offence / a virtual asset in question, only verbal repentance, private key, transfer of assets in the chain, refusal to cooperate in the seizure of the virtual currency involved, or a wide waiver of the guilty plea. With regard to the centralization, cross-border storage and public-private key separation of money-ring assets, the judicial authorities may request assistance from suspects in obtaining information on exchange flows, cold wallets, offshore accounts, and the recovery of assets is the central rule for the determination of the penalty。

The second is the compression of the broad range ladder, the broad range of felonies and the greater width of misdemeanours。IN 2016, THE NEW LAW ABOLISHED THE NON-DISCRIMINATION RULE AND INTRODUCED A TWO-WAY CLASSIFICATION OF THE AMOUNT INVOLVED, SOCIAL HARM AND HIERARCHICAL STATUS. WITH MORE THAN 50 MILLION FUNDS INVOLVED, THE CORE PRINCIPALS, SUCH AS FRAUD, CROSS-BORDER MONEY LAUNDERING, ORGANIZING, LEADING AND DISTRIBUTING PLATFORMS, EVEN WHEN GUILTY PLEAS ARE MADE, ARE SIGNIFICANTLY NARROWED FROM A BROAD CEILING; THE BOTTOM OTC OPERATOR, TEMPORARY RUNNERS, UNINFORMED PART-TIMERS, CAN RETAIN A LARGER RANGE OF LENIENCY, PROBATION AND EVEN NO PROSECUTORIAL SPACE AFTER FULL RETURN. AT THE SAME TIME, THE LEVEL OF DETAIL WAS REDUCED BY UP TO 30 PER CENT IN THE INVESTIGATION PHASE, 20 PER CENT IN THE REVIEW OF THE PROSECUTION PHASE, ONLY 10 PER CENT IN THE FIRST INSTANCE, AND THE SECOND READING OF THE CONFESSION WAS NO LONGER SUBJECT TO RETROACTIVE LENIENCY。

Thirdly, subjective knowledge of the pre-exemption of scrutiny is to be seen in terms of the effects of the defence, such as “not knowing the rules of the circle”。IN PAST CASES, JUDICIAL AUTHORITIES HAVE FREQUENTLY USED THE PRESUMPTION OF KNOWLEDGE TO FORCE PERPETRATORS TO CONFESS GUILT, AND NEW RULES TO STRENGTHEN THE RULE OF PRESUMPTION OF ELECTRONIC EVIDENCE AND OBJECTIVE BEHAVIOUR, COMBINED WITH THE 2024 JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION OF MONEY-LAUNDERING (VIRTUAL ASSET TRANSACTIONS INCLUDED IN STATUTORY MONEY-LAUNDERING), 2026 AND REGULATORY DOCUMENT NO. 42, IN WHICH THE INVESTIGATING AUTHORITIES, THROUGH OFF-THE-SHELF PREMIUM TRANSACTIONS, FREQUENT CASH SWAPS OF U, CASH-FOR-LINE EXCHANGE, AVOIDANCE OF PLATFORM CONTROLS, LARGE SHARES OF USDT TRANSFERS, PRESUMED SUBJECTIVE KNOWLEDGE THAT THE SUSPECT REFUSED TO CONFESS ON THE GROUNDS THAT HE WAS “NORMALLY SCRIBBLE, UNCLEAR ABOUT THE UPSTREAM PROCEEDS” AND NO LONGER ACCEPTED IT EASILY AND FORCED THE SUSPECT TO CONFESS OBJECTIVELY. FROM ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE, OF COURSE, THE NEW REGULATIONS INCREASE THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE JUDICIARY TO EXAMINE CASES OF GUILTY PLEAS WITH SUBJECTIVE KNOWLEDGE, THUS PROVIDING MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO COMMIT OFFENCES THAN BEFORE IN CASES WHERE SUBJECTIVE KNOWLEDGE DOES NOT EXIST。

Fourthly, guilty pleas are institutionalized and the circumstances of guilty pleas are explicitly removed。In cases where the money ring case has been signed without a valid appeal and where the court has pleaded not guilty, the prosecution may, in accordance with the law, challenge the case, revoke the original guilty plea and grant a lenient sentence, the court may increase the sentence on the basis of the original sentencing recommendation, and deter speculation that some of the accused have used the guilty plea in exchange for bail to reverse the confession in court。

Fifthly, the criteria for non-prosecution are further clarified。The Public Prosecutor ' s Office may, in accordance with the law, decide not to prosecute the perpetrators of the crimes committed by the perpetrators, who are smaller in amount, less profitable, less passively involved, are single-handedly involved in the collection of the proceeds of the offence, have no previous record, and have voluntarily signed a confession of guilt。

II. IMPACT OF THE NEW PROVISIONS ON THE DIFFICULTIZATION OF CRIMINAL CASES IN THE CURRENTS

In the current currency circle, where criminal cases are concentrated on six major counts, the logic of the application of guilty pleas to new offences has been significantly differentiated, taking into account the evolution of jurisprudence in 2026:

(I) ILLEGAL COLLECTION OF PUBLIC DEPOSITS, FINANCING OF TOKENS (ICO, RWA TOKENIZATION): EASY-TO-PLEASURE BY REAL-EMPLOYERS AND LIGHT BY ORDINARY OPERATORS LAND

THIS TYPE OF CASE HAS BECOME MORE RIGID, WITH THE FOUNDERS OF THE PLATFORM, TECHNICAL DIRECTORS AND ACTUAL FUND-RAISERS HAVING COMMITTED MAJOR CRIMES IN THE FINANCIAL FIELD, EVEN IF THEY HAVE FULLY PLEADED GUILTY TO THE FACT THAT THE JUDICIAL AUTHORITIES ARE LEGALLY INSUFFICIENTLY LENIENT AND GENERALLY CLOSE TO THE LOWER LIMITS OF THE STATUTORY BENCHMARK, AND ARE UNABLE TO RELY ON GUILTY PLEAS FOR A SUBSTANTIAL REDUCTION IN SUSPENDED SENTENCES, OWING TO THE LARGE NUMBER OF VICTIMS INVOLVED, THE LARGE SUMS INVOLVED AND THE HIGH RISK OF CAUSING GROUP DAMAGE. UNDER THE NEW REGULATIONS, BOTTOM-LEVEL PRACTITIONERS, SUCH AS VENDORS, CUSTOMERS' UNIFORMS AND OFF-LINE PROMOTIONS, BENEFIT FROM PROACTIVE CUSTOMER DATA COLLATION, RETENTION OF VIRTUAL ASSETS IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE RECOVERY PLATFORM, FULL REFUND OF COMMISSION AND GUILTY PLEAS. IN MOST CASES, PROBATION AND DETENTION CAN BE ACHIEVED, AND THOSE INVOLVED IN VERY SMALL CASES CAN SEEK NON-PROSECUTION, AND A LARGE NUMBER OF THOSE INVOLVED AT THE LOWER AND MIDDLE LEVELS MINIMIZE CRIMINAL LIABILITY THROUGH PLEAS。

(ii) Virtual currency money-laundering offences (including money-laundering): wide-banding of proceeds and chain-based asset recovery decisions

ACCORDING TO TWO HIGH-LEVEL JUDICIAL INTERPRETATIONS OF MONEY-LAUNDERING, THE USE OF USDT, THE CROSS-BORDER TRANSFER OF STABLE CURRENCY, AND THE LAUNDERING OF STOLEN MONEY BY COMMINGLED CURRENCY HAVE BEEN EXPRESSLY LISTED AS LEGAL ACTS OF MONEY-LAUNDERING. UNDER THE NEW REGULATIONS, THE CRITERIA FOR GUILTY PLEAS APPLIED FROM MONEY-LAUNDERING SUBJECTS (UPSTREAM FRAUD, EXCHANGE OF FUNDS FOR U-MONEY LAUNDERING) ARE STRINGENT, WITH ALL THE PRIVATE KEYS INVOLVED, COOPERATION IN THE FREEZING OF ASSETS ON OFFSHORE PLATFORMS, AND COMPLETION OF RECOVERY OF PROCEEDS; REFUSAL TO HAND OVER COLD WALLET ASSETS, THE MOVEMENT OF ASSETS TO UNPROVEN ONES, AND EVEN GUILTY PLEAS, DO NOT APPLY LENIENCY. IN THE CASE OF INTERGENERATIONAL MONEY LAUNDERERS, LARGE OTC HOUSEHOLDS, THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN ONE-OFF MONEY LAUNDERING AND PROFESSIONAL MONEY LAUNDERING IS REDUCED BY A SMALL CHANGE IN U MONEY LAUNDERING, WITH A FULL CONFESSION OF GUILT REDUCED BY A REDUCED SENTENCE; IN THE CASE OF MONEY LAUNDERING BASED ON OTC, THE AMOUNT OF GUILTY PLEAS CAN BE SCALED UP OVER THE YEARS AND THE THRESHOLD FOR SUSPENDED SENTENCES IS SIGNIFICANTLY RAISED。

(III) TRUST OFFENCES, CONCEALMENT OF PROCEEDS OF CRIME (OTC REMOVAL OF BRICKS, RUN-OFF U): MISDEMEANOURS TEND TO BE WIDESPREAD AND APPLY TO GUILTY PLEAS

THIS CATEGORY HAS THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF GRASS-ROOTS CASES IN THE CURRENCY RING, MOST OF WHICH ARE PART-TIME “MOVING BRICKS” AND SPORADICALLY SELLING USDTS, AND THE NEW REGULATIONS MAINTAIN A LIGHT ORIENTATION FOR SUCH MISDEMEANOURS. IN PRACTICE, SUSPECTS CAN BE SUSPENDED IN MORE THAN 60 PER CENT OF CASES IF THEY TAKE THE INITIATIVE TO ACCOUNT FOR THE FULL FLOW OF TRANSACTIONS, REFUND THE PROFITS, COOPERATE WITH THE FREEZING OF ACCOUNTS ON THE EXCHANGE, AND SIGN A PLEA OF GUILTY, WITH A 35 PER CENT INCREASE IN THE NON-PROSECUTION RATE FOR THOSE WITH A SINGLE FLOW OF LESS THAN $500,000 AND A PROFIT OF LESS THAN $20,000. HOWEVER, MEMBERS OF A PROFESSIONAL GROUP FORMED IN THE FORM OF A GANG, WHICH HAD LONG RECEIVED THE PROCEEDS AT HIGH PRICES, NO LONGER APPLIED THE RULE OF PETTY NON-INDICTMENT AND PLEADED GUILTY ONLY AS A MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCE。

(iv) Virtual currency fraud, contract scavenging: guilty pleas have a greater impact on sentencing

In the case of currency rolls, false contracts, air currency fraud, property losses of victims are irreversible, and the new rules are clear: full refund of the victim ' s loss + guilty plea is the only substantial route to the punishment; if the proceeds cannot be refunded, the funds involved are diverted, even if oral pleas are limited to within 5 per cent, the baseline punishment remains essentially unchanged. A large amount of money-knocking was diverted from the chain of assets and the case proceeded to a heavy sentence。

(v) Illegal dealing (unqualified exchange of large amounts of currency, payment settlement): distinction between occasional transactions and professionalized operations

THE NEW RULES DISTINGUISH BETWEEN OCCASIONAL AND SPORADIC EXCHANGES OF MONEY BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS AND THE LONG-STANDING OPENING OF OTC STORES AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NETWORK OF WIRED MONEY POINTS: THE FORMER ARE SUBJECT TO ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES AFTER HAVING PLEADED GUILTY, WITHOUT RESORTING TO CRIMINAL PENALTIES; THE LATTER IS A MONEY DEALER WHO IS OPERATING ILLEGALLY AND WHO CAN ONLY MAKE A SMALL REDUCTION IN FINES AND SENTENCES, WITH A NORMAL PUNISHMENT。

III. The new rules alter the substantive response logic between the parties and defence counsel

(i) The parties involved: the guilty plea option has shifted from “no guilt” to “proceeds, nodes, total refunds”

First, the gold window of the investigation phase is seized, the guilty plea of the new investigation stage is the most lenient, and in cases where the individual considers that the offence is committed, priority is given to combing the assets, private keys, platform accounts on the individual chain, proactively cooperating with the public security chain, co-opting the collection of funds for the return of the proceeds of the offence and maximizing leniency. Of course, if the perpetrator does not believe that he or she is guilty of a crime, he or she should not cooperate in the transfer of the virtual currency, either actively or passively. In many cases, the author considers that the transfer of currency by the perpetrator substantially makes the defence more difficult。

Secondly, decisions on appeals tend to be conservative in the face of the risk of clemency and increased penalties being set aside, as a result of due diligence, the absence of any new evidence and procedural defects。

(ii) Defence counsel: shift in focus of defence from qualitative defence to sentencing consultation and consolidation of assets

First, the work of lawyers has shifted to distinguishing between the status of principals, stripping individuals of their legitimate investment assets, developing a phased restitution programme, seeking limited leniency on the basis of guilty pleas; and those at the bottom, focusing on the promotion of guilty pleas and full restitution, making every effort to seek probation and not to prosecute。

Secondly, the first step in the case was to assist the fixed wallet address, the historical bills of the exchange, to distinguish between the individual ' s own legitimate virtual assets and the proceeds involved, to avoid the seizure of legal assets together, and to provide data support for the negotiation of a return and conviction negotiation。

Third, in accordance with the new classification of leniency rules, there is a clear leniency rate, conditions for suspended sentences and criteria for fines at the sentencing consultation stage of the prosecution。

IV. Judicial governance extension: promoting stock risk in the money-ring industry Clear

- YeahTHERE IS A DOUBLE CONSTRAINT ON THE NEW REGULATION OF GUILTY PLEAS, AS WELL AS AN INITIATIVE BY OTC TRADERS AND SMALL VIRTUAL CURRENCY PROJECT OPERATORS TO SHUT DOWN IRREGULAR EXCHANGE AND FUND-RAISING OPERATIONS, AND A LARGE NUMBER OF GREY CURRENCY-CIRCUMVENTION BUSINESSES。

Two is..PREVIOUSLY, COURTS IN DIFFERENT REGIONS HAD IMPOSED VERY DIFFERENT SENTENCES IN THE SAME OTC CASES, AND NEW REGULATIONS HAD BEEN INTRODUCED TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE ON THE PUNISHMENT OF OFFENCES IN FINE-TUNING CIRCLES, AND GUILTY PLEAS HAD BEEN LOOSELY QUANTIFIED AND THE SCALE OF ADJUDICATION OF CASES INVOLVING THE SAME AMOUNT AND CIRCUMSTANCES HAD BEEN HARMONIZED。

Three is..Increased efficiency in the recovery of the stolen funds involved in past currency-circumvention cases resulting in less than 30 per cent recovery due to the concealment of assets outside the country and loss of private key. Following the imposition of penalties, there has been a significant increase in the willingness of suspects to cooperate with tracing assets and a steady increase in the recovery rate of assets involved throughout the industry, maximizing the economic losses of investors。

In the case of currency-related criminal cases, the new 2026 guilty plea rule is not simply broad-based, but also a modern system of governance for serious crimes that is broad in scope, broad in scale and punishable by kidnapping. With regard to the unique features of the onlineization of offences, the decentralisation of assets and the widespread nature of the cases, the new rules increase the efficiency of the cases and the recovery of money. For the subjects involved and defence counsel, the crime and non-crimes should be defined precisely and clearly, and the new rules on guilty pleas should be used effectively to achieve a fine-tuning defence and gaming and to seek the most favourable outcome for the parties in the defence of innocence and in the light of the crime。