Analysis: It may be unrealistic for the Chinese victims in the Qian Zhimin case to expect a surge in Bitcoin prices to obtain large compensation.

The hearing for Qian Zhimin's Bitcoin civil recovery case was held this week. Judge Turner, presiding over the case, clearly pointed out that if multiple legal teams, lacking a fundamental conflict of interest, pursue litigation based on the same facts and similar legal issues, using different strategies and processes, the proceedings will be severely delayed, legal costs will accumulate rapidly, and ultimately, the assets the victim hopes to recover may be eroded. The court's rational concern is not the tragic differences between individual victims, but rather the controllability of the judicial process. Meanwhile, the UK Prosecutor's Office (DPP) maintains that its recommendation to the court on October 15, 2025—to reserve a certain amount of assets in the civil recovery proceedings for a comprehensive compensation arrangement for the large number of Chinese victims—is the most effective and realistic solution. This means that once such assets (funds) are reserved, they can be transferred to the Chinese government in the future through cooperation between Chinese and British law enforcement agencies to implement specific victim compensation plans and provide compensation after verifying the victims' identities and losses. Under this approach, it is unrealistic for Chinese victims to expect substantial compensation based on Bitcoin's years-long price surge. The implied compensation limit of this proposal is, at most, the actual losses already registered and confirmed by the Chinese police. (Caixin)