Hong Kong JPEX scandal: influencer Joseph Lam stops renting crypto shop, says he has cut ties with platform at centre of alleged fraud and will adopt ‘positive attitude’

Reporters questioned Lam at a high-profile press conference on Friday following his release on bail, but the 33-year-old said he could not comment on the case as a criminal investigation was ongoing. While acknowledging the gravity of his situation, he voiced optimism and quoted his “idol” Winston Churchill.

“I know that many people have troubles. What I am facing now is even bigger trouble. But I choose to take a positive attitude. Like what my idol Winston Churchill said: ‘For myself I am an optimist – it does not seem to be much use to be anything else’,” he said.

Lam said he was no longer involved in the business activities of JPEX, and had on Wednesday prematurely terminated the rental contract for his office, which he ran as an over-the-counter crypto exchange store, as he was facing what he called a “very serious matter”.

The lease termination for the more than 2,900 sq ft premises at the Entertainment Building in Central came about two weeks after Lam began renting the space on a two-year deal for operating the business “Lam Chok Coin Speculation”.

It was searched by police earlier this week, with boxes of evidence and a substantial amount of cash seized. He had previously told the media the monthly rent of the unit was HK$260,000 and that he would need to pay compensation for terminating the lease prematurely.

Lam, a former lawyer who went on to have a stint in insurance, is among 11 suspects arrested since Monday after police received more than 2,000 complaints of alleged fraud against JPEX as of Thursday. He was arrested over conspiracy to defraud and released on bail on Tuesday.

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The platform has been accused of misleading investors while continuing to operate without applying for a licence to offer virtual asset trading services.

The press conference on Friday was held in the living room of the influencer’s luxurious Mid-Levels, with more than 100 journalists cramming into the space.

Wearing a suit and accompanied by his lawyer David Fenn, Lam told reporters he had been advised by his counsel not to comment on any details of the case.

“I felt miserable in the past months … While many of my haters may feel happy, some internet users saw me as a loser, but perhaps the most successful loser,” the influencer said.

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Throughout the 30-minute conference, he was grilled by journalists over his involvement with JPEX, his connections with those behind the platform and whether his assets were frozen. But he refused to comment and repeated that he would assist investigations by law enforcement agencies.

He also pledged to “provide assistance” to the victims after the case was closed.

The alleged case of financial fraud involving HK$1.37 billion is the largest of its kind in Hong Kong’s history.

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Lam and Chan Wing-yee, a YouTuber also among those arrested, have set up cash-for-crypto shops in the city.

Lam previously worked as an insurance agent at Prudential Hong Kong. He was sacked by the company after he put a pair of sports shoes on sale on social media that were the same kind as the ones worn by a suspect who allegedly killed two women in a brutal knife attack in the Plaza Hollywood shopping centre in June.

On Friday, Malaysian actress Jacquelin Ch’ng Se Min broke her silence after being questioned by the police a day earlier. She and local actor Julian Cheung Chi-lam were both involved in a campaign promoting the trading platform.

Ch’ng said on her Instagram that she took the initiative to approach the police while she was travelling overseas. She said she “was fine” and reserved the right to take action over “untrue” reports about her.

Cheung served as the platform’s local “brand ambassador”, as part of a wider promotional campaign, while Ch’ng filmed a promotional video for the company.

Additional reporting by Elizabeth Cheung