From AEX Founder to Inmate: Huang Tianwei’s Ascendancy and Decline in Thailand
On June 12, the local Thai media outlet “Khaosod English” reported that the Thai Immigration Bureau apprehended a 39-year-old Chinese man named Huang Tianwei at Don Mueang International Airport as he was trying to board Lion Air flight SL100. He faces accusations of involvement in a cryptocurrency fraud case amounting to 200 million Thai Baht (around 5 million USD). Huang Tianwei used to be the founder of AEX (Anyin Exchange), which was a significant entity in the cryptocurrency industry.
In July 2022, AEX, a cryptocurrency trading platform, collapsed and ceased its withdrawal function, stating that it could not fulfill user withdrawal requests due to short-term liquidity problems. This detention not only disclosed the enigma concerning Huang Tianwei’s location over the past few years but also revealed the AEX exchange’s collapse” incident back into the public eye.
Huang Tianwei and the Rise of AEX
Huang Tianwei represents one of the early figures in the Chinese cryptocurrency industry. He established Bit Era Exchange in 2013, which was among the first Bitcoin trading platforms in China. The cryptocurrency market was in a phase of wild growth at that time, with Bitcoin prices fluctuating dramatically and drawing in many speculators and early investors. Due to its low fees and flexible trading mechanisms, Bit Era rapidly accumulated a user base and became one of the more well-known trading platforms.
In 2018, Bit Era changed its name to AEX (Anyin Exchange) and started its expansion into the global market. AEX concentrated on financial products with high yields and trading with significant leverage, drawing in many retail investors. User @chaoge_btc on platform X states that At its height, AEX boasted a vast user base and claimed to oversee assets valued in the billions of dollars.
Due to his astute market perception and bold operational tactics, Huang Tianwei was viewed as a legendary entrepreneur in the cryptocurrency field. Nonetheless, this high-yield model hid considerable risks.
AEX’s Collapse and Huang Tianwei’s Escape
AEX started to face a liquidity crisis in 2021. User @0xwanchongshan claims that AEX shut down its withdrawal function in 2022 because of “liquidity issues,” which resulted in many users being unable to access their funds. Investors found out that the platform’s promised high-yield financial products were a Ponzi scheme, depending on funds from new users to pay interest to existing ones. With the market entering a bear phase and the capital chain breaking, AEX rapidly descended into a bank run.
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