The Chinese Cryptoqueen

The Chinese Cryptoqueen

Between 2014 and 2017 thousands of ordinary Chinese people handed their money over to a company that promised them fabulous riches by helping them to ride the wave of the future - cryptocurrency. That vision collapsed when the shadowy figure behind it, Qian Zhimin, fled to the UK with a Bitcoin stash bought with their money.

She settled down in London, planning her comeback as the Queen of Liberland, a scrap of land on the banks of the Danube. But her downfall began when she botched an attempt to buy a north London mansion. This alerted the police, who arrested Qian and seized a stash of Bitcoin now worth billions of dollars.

Many investors put everything they had into the company. Several have now told the BBC how they were persuaded to invest, and how the company’s collapse led to personal and financial ruin.

Now, as Qian is sentenced, the question remains: will the victims get their money back?

Episoder(2000)

Museum of Lost Objects: The fire that scorched Brazil’s history

Museum of Lost Objects: The fire that scorched Brazil’s history

It’s been a year since Brazil’s National Museum burned down in a fire. Not only was its collection one of the most extraordinary in the world, but Brazil’s entire history ran through the museum. On th...

1 Sep 201959min

Lethal Force in Rio’s Favelas

Lethal Force in Rio’s Favelas

Brazil’s party capital, Rio de Janeiro, is witnessing a killing spree. Nothing new there, you might think – it’s long suffered from violent crime. Yet in this case, it’s the police who stand accused o...

29 Aug 201926min

Why Woodstock still matters

Why Woodstock still matters

The Woodstock myth is a potent and evocative symbol of the '60s utopian hippie dream – the ultimate example of the unifying power of music, peace and love. To mark the 50th anniversary of one of the f...

29 Aug 201949min

Afghan Star 2: Music, tradition and the Taliban

Afghan Star 2: Music, tradition and the Taliban

The TV talent show Afghan Star has been running for 14 years, and has never been won by a woman singer. This year one of the two finalists is an 18-year-old girl – if she wins, it will be a historic b...

28 Aug 201927min

Maria Ressa: The Filipino-American journalist combating fake news

Maria Ressa: The Filipino-American journalist combating fake news

Maria Ressa, the Filipino-American journalist and author was included in Time's Person of the Year 2018 as one of a collection of journalists from around the world combating fake news. Earlier this ye...

27 Aug 201927min

My very extended family

My very extended family

Two years ago Julia, a high school student from Ohio, received an email from a woman in New York she had never met, claiming that her daughter and Julia shared the same biological father. The phone ca...

24 Aug 201950min

Romania's killer roads

Romania's killer roads

Everybody in Romania knows someone who has died in a road accident. The country has the highest road death rate in the European Union – twice the EU average and more than three times that in the UK. A...

22 Aug 201930min

Afghan Star 1: A TV talent show

Afghan Star 1: A TV talent show

Sahar Zand is in Kabul for the finals of Afghan Star, a TV talent show that is on the front line of the fight to keep music alive in Afghanistan, following the years of the Taliban regime, when music ...

21 Aug 201927min

Populært innen Samfunn

alt-fortalt
rss-spartsklubben
giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
aftenpodden-usa
konspirasjonspodden
popradet
rss-nesten-hele-uka-med-lepperod
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
grenselos
wolfgang-wee-uncut
fladseth
synnve-og-vanessa
frokostshowet-pa-p5
rss-dannet-uten-piano
rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
min-barneoppdragelse
den-politiske-situasjonen
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
rss-herrepanelet