A cousin of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said Wednesday he had owned a 30 percent stake in a digital payments platform linked to cyberscams and money laundering and sanctioned by Washington.

[samlot chit]

Cambodian PM's cousin says owned 30% of scam-linked firm

Phnom Penh (AFP) – A cousin of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said Wednesday he had owned a 30 percent stake in a digital payments platform linked to cyberscams and money laundering and sanctioned by Washington.

Issued on: 06/05/2026 :https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20260506-cambodian-pm-s-cousin-says-owned-30-of-scam-linked-firm

Reading time

Chinese and Cambodian nationals believed to be Huione Pay creditors clash with police during a protest demanding their accounts be unfrozen, in Phnom Penh in April © TANG CHHIN Sothy / AFP/File

The former chairman of Huione Group, the entity that owned the platform in question, was extradited last month to China, where authorities accused him of multiple crimes over his alleged key role in a major transnational gambling and fraud syndicate.

Businessman Hun To, a member of the family that has ruled Cambodia for four decades, said he had "owned 30 percent of shares" in Huione Pay, responding in a statement to what he called accusations of "being the boss" of the firm.

Hun To, who was previously listed as a company director on the commerce ministry's online business registry, added that he did not manage the platform's operations and "never received any profits, dividends or assets" from it.

The US government last year accused Huione Group, which owned several companies offering e-commerce, payment and cryptocurrency exchange services, of laundering funds for transnational criminal groups perpetrating internet scams from Southeast Asia.