The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has ordered Prince Bank to enter liquidation and immediately cease operations after Chen Zhu, founder and chairman of Prince Holding Group, was charged by the U.S. with multi-billion-dollar fraud and recently extradited to China.
In a statement released today (8 Jan), the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) ordered Prince Bank to undergo liquidation under Cambodian law and appointed Morisonkak MKA auditing firm as the official liquidator.
The statement said Prince Bank is suspended from all new banking services, including deposit-taking and lending. However, the NBC outlined procedures for customers: depositors may withdraw funds as usual by preparing the necessary documents, while borrowers must continue to repay loans and fulfill obligations as normal.
Prince Bank is a subsidiary of Prince Holding Group, one of Cambodia’s largest conglomerates, founded by Chen Zhu, a Chinese-Cambodian billionaire who has become a major international target. In October 2025, U.S. and U.K. authorities sanctioned him for orchestrating call center and online scam gangs exploiting human trafficking victims in Cambodia.
In the U.S., Chen faces charges of conspiracy to commit electronic fraud and money laundering linked to the seizure of approximately 127,271 bitcoins, currently valued at over $11 billion (about 380 billion baht). If convicted in the U.S., he could face up to 40 years in prison.
Prince Group has denied all allegations previously, while the U.S. Department of Justice and Chinese authorities have not yet commented on the arrest and extradition.
Chen Zhu, also known as Vincent Chen, owns Prince Holding Group or Prince Group, established in Cambodia in 2015. It is one of the largest conglomerates, comprising numerous companies with over 100 businesses in sectors including real estate development, banking, finance, aviation, tourism, logistics, technology, and food and beverage. He has close ties with senior Cambodian politicians, beginning as an advisor to former Interior Minister Sar Kheng in 2017, then rising to become a close advisor to the Prime Minister and was appointed as Neak Oknha Chen Zhu.