Large crowds gathered outside Prince Bank’s main branch in Phnom Penh early Saturday morning to withdraw their savings, while some other branches temporarily halted transactions due to insufficient liquidity, according to The Chosun Daily.
Public anger grew when Prince Bank’s website and mobile application became inaccessible.
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Motorists ride past a branch of the Prince Bank in Phnom Penh on Oct. 15, 2025. Photo by AFP |
The bank urged customers to remain patient, assuring them that its services were operating normally, but it faced numerous public complaints.
“The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control measures will not affect the bank’s operational capability. We remain committed to managing all customer relationships with honesty and transparency,” the bank said.
The wave of withdrawals was triggered by sanctions announced on Oct. 14 by the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and the British government, targeting Prince Holding Group (the parent company of Prince Bank) and its founder and chairman Chen Zhi.
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Chen Zhi, founder and chairman of Prince Holding Group. Photo courtesy of Prince Holding Group |
The U.S. government has charged Chen with fraud and money laundering, seizing over US$15 billion in bitcoin, allegedly laundered by Chen and Prince Holding Group.
This seizure represents the largest asset forfeiture in the Department of Justice’s history. If convicted, Chen faces up to 40 years in prison.
The U.K. government sanctioned Golden Fortune Resort World, which operates the Prince Compound near Phnom Penh, and added Jinbei Group, linked to Prince Holding Group through its hotels and casinos, and the digital currency platform Byex Exchange to its sanctions list.
Both governments alleged that Chen has been running in a transnational criminal network, defrauding victims globally, and exploiting trafficked workers across Southeast Asia.
In a response to reassure depositors, the National Bank of Cambodia said that it is ensuring customer accounts function normally and remain secure, emphasizing that banks are legally obligated to maintain sufficient liquidity to meet depositors’ demands, according to KiriPost.
