MEXC, a global cryptocurrency exchange, announced that investigators used blockchain tracing and traditional financial forensics to connect alleged crypto bribes to real-world assets in a corruption case involving former digital yuan architect Yan Qian.
According to MEXC, Chinese state media, in a CCTV documentary aired on January 14, demonstrated how investigators tracked 2,000 Ethereum (ETH) sent in 2018 to a personal wallet. They also discovered three USB-like hardware wallets in an office drawer containing “tens of millions of yuan” in cryptocurrency. The report indicated that blockchain transparency assisted investigators in reconstructing the transactions and linking the converted digital assets to the purchase of a villa in Beijing.
Despite the bribery case, China’s digital yuan (e-CNY) has seen rapid growth. By late 2025, its total transaction value had exceeded $2.3 trillion, increasing by more than 800% since 2023. This makes it the world’s largest live central bank digital currency experiment. Policy updates aim to boost adoption while maintaining close monitoring of the system.
Major cryptocurrency exchanges are required to operate under strict anti-money-laundering and know-your-customer regulations and are expected to cooperate with authorities. Binance said that it has implemented a robust compliance system that includes onboarding checks, real-time transaction monitoring, and reporting suspicious activity. From January to November 2023, Binance processed approximately 53,000 law-enforcement requests and served about 13,000 verified officers through its Law Enforcement Request System.
MEXC was launched in 2018 and now serves users across more than 170 countries and regions with over 40 million users worldwide. The exchange claims its purpose is to “simplify crypto” through a secure and user-friendly experience while maintaining high standards of regulatory compliance as part of its responsibility to users.
