The Cypriot cabinet officially revoked the citizenship of Su Haijin and Wang Dehai, two Chinese nationals convicted in Singapore for their involvement in a large-scale money laundering scheme. The two businessmen had obtained Cypriot passports through the Citizenship by Investment program, which was shut down at the end of 2020 after an Al Jazeera investigation.
According to the Singapore court's ruling, both were found guilty of laundering large sums of money and evading arrest. Su was sentenced to 14 months in prison and lost approximately 95% of his assets, totaling €110 million. Wang Dahai received a 16-month prison sentence and lost 90% of his assets, totaling about €33 million.
One of the largest money laundering cases in Singapore's history
The August 2023 operation in Singapore was one of the largest in the country's history and received international attention. Ten people were arrested; all were Chinese citizens holding passports from other countries, including Cyprus. The total amount of frozen assets exceeded €2 billion. The investigation linked the money to illegal online gambling, fraud, and shadow lending in China and the Philippines. Interestingly, reports of suspicious activity began reaching the Singaporean authorities as early as 2021, indicating the scheme's long-standing nature.
Mass cancellation of "golden" passports in Cyprus
To date, Cypriot authorities have revoked 306 passports issued under the investment program. Of these, 88 belonged to the investors themselves, and 218 belonged to their family members. These actions aim to restore Cyprus's international reputation, which was seriously undermined by the abuse of the previous program.
Joe Low Case: Another Investor Loses Citizenship
It was recently announced that Joe Low, a Malaysian billionaire involved in an international case concerning the embezzlement of funds from the 1MDB sovereign wealth fund, had his Cypriot citizenship revoked. He received a Cypriot passport in 2015 despite already being under investigation.
The Cypriot authorities revoked his citizenship in June 2024. According to the latest information, Low is believed to be hiding in Shanghai under the name Konstantinos Achilles Weiss, using a fake Australian passport and fictitious Greek identity.
Conclusion: Cyprus is cleaning up its reputation
After years of pressure from the EU and journalistic investigations, the country continues to review the results of its controversial investment program and revoke citizenship from individuals whose behavior or past undermines its authority. This is part of a broader strategy to protect national security, strengthen the legal framework, and rebuild trust with the international community.