Legal case: How to unfreeze millions of RMB from frozen bank cards after selling USDT

For friends in the cryptocurrency circle, selling the USDT (Tether) they hold is a very common thing. However, in the buying and selling of USDT (Tether), due to the flow of funds, the seller’s bank card sometimes appears in an "unusual" state - restricted use, which is what we usually call freezing.

The case I want to share with you today is an experience where a friend in the cryptocurrency circle sold USDT (Tether), but after receiving the consideration transferred by the other party, hundreds of thousands of yuan in his bank card were frozen, and it took many twists and turns to unfreeze it.

01 Basic Situation

In June this year, Ms. Huang suddenly found that the RMB 1 million in her bank card was frozen and could not be used. After several inquiries, she learned that the freezing agency was A police. Worried, Ms. Huang quickly called A police to inquire about the freezing of her bank card. She learned that the amount involved in the case was mainly the money received from two U sales. These two sums of money were transferred by the victim and flowed into Ms. Huang's account through two layers. They are now identified as stolen money by the police.

Although the amount involved in the case only accounted for one tenth of the total amount, the 1 million yuan in the entire bank card was frozen, which is not a small amount. Ms. Huang was very anxious and tried to communicate with police officer A many times. She also wrote and submitted a statement of the situation. However, police officer A told Ms. Huang that her card could not be unfrozen now and there was no expected time for unfreezing.

In desperation, Ms. Huang learned about our law firm from a friend and sought help from Attorney Mankiw.

02 Lawyer intervention

Attorney Mankiw communicated with Ms. Huang several times and provided her with a list of materials based on the actual situation of Ms. Huang's U-selling process. Next, we studied and discussed the case in combination with the case situation and supporting materials, and drafted a general unfreezing service plan. After Ms. Huang confirmed the commission, we immediately communicated with the police for the first time, confirmed the basic information, understood the progress of the case, and arranged a time for an interview with the police.

Attorney Mankiw went to the scene again to have more specific communication with Police Officer A, but at this time, the police's attitude was still relatively tough, and they did not easily reduce their suspicion of Ms. Huang, and their understanding of virtual currency was also relatively arbitrary. After making some adjustments based on the communication situation, in the spirit of solving the problem, the lawyer communicated with Police Officer A by phone again. We insisted on a sincere attitude, expressed our willingness to appeal, and gave a full range of legal theory and practical analysis. The attitude of the police began to ease. After the second interview, the progress of unfreezing the card was greatly advanced, and Police Officer A agreed to have further unfreezing communication with Ms. Huang.

Later, Ms. Huang and police officer A determined the steps and details of unfreezing the bank card, and took notes accompanied by a lawyer. Finally, the police agreed to unfreeze the card, and Ms. Huang's frozen bank card was successfully unfrozen a week later.

03 Solution

The successful unfreezing of Ms. Huang’s bank card relied on the correct unfreezing ideas, sufficient professional knowledge and good communication skills.

First, we expressed our attitude towards appealing and unfreezing our frozen bank cards to the public security department.

Secondly, we made a clear distinction between the funds involved in the case and those not involved in the case, and gave corresponding opinions and reasoning.

Next, we provided different evidentiary materials and legal basis for different parts of the frozen funds, and conducted a detailed and comprehensive interpretation based on relevant policies and case circumstances.

Finally, we also work hard to cooperate with the public security work.

Therefore, throughout the entire process, although there were many obstacles in the thawing process, Ms. Huang’s original goal was finally achieved, and the lawyer’s prediction was also verified.

It should be noted that in this case, since Ms. Huang's bank card was unfrozen in a timely manner, her bank card was not supervised or restricted by any other institution or department except Public Security Bureau A. After Public Security Bureau A unfrozen the card, her bank card was quickly restored to normal use.

04 Lawyer Tips

If you know your bank card is frozen, don't worry. Through today's unfreezing case, Attorney Mankiw has a few suggestions for everyone to apply for unfreezing bank cards.

Step 1: Self-examination. The cardholder needs to recall the recent transaction records of the frozen bank card and reflect on whether he has any improper or suspicious transaction behavior. If necessary, he can retrieve the bank transaction records for verification one by one and conduct a comprehensive "physical examination" of the funds in and out of his frozen bank card.

Step 2: Find a bank. If the cardholder wants to know the specific situation of the bank card being frozen, the first place to find is the bank that opened the card. The cardholder can ask the full name of the bank card freezing agency, contact information and other relevant information from the bank. The cardholder can make a phone call first, and if necessary, go to the bank to make an on-site inquiry. If it is only a restriction of the bank system, just provide the relevant materials and explanation according to the bank's requirements. If the bank card is frozen by the public security agency, proceed to the next step.

Step 3: Contact the police. According to the freezing information provided by the bank, ask the freezing authority for detailed information such as the reason for freezing the bank card, the amount involved, the specific transaction flow, the freezing period, and the conditions for releasing the card.

After completing the above three steps, you can then consider how to apply for unfreezing based on the frozen situation. If the cardholder is unable to unfreeze the card by himself or does not have enough time and energy, he can entrust a professional lawyer to assist or do it on his behalf, just like Ms. Huang did.