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SEC files a criminal complaint against former director and CEO of Zipmex for making false statements or concealing facts that should have been disclosed to the public



Thursday 8 February 2024 | No. 33 / 2024


Bangkok, 8 February 2024 – The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a criminal complaint against Mr. Akalarp Yimwilai, former director and chief executive officer (CEO) responsible for the operation of Zipmex Co., Ltd. or Zipmex Thailand, with the Economic Crime Suppression Division of the Royal Thai Police (ECD). The complaint involves making false statements in a dishonest and deceitful manner, or concealing facts that should have been disclosed to the public, which has led to obtaining assets from the public. Additionally, the case includes committing or permitting false entries or failing to enter material statements in the accounts or documents of Zipmex Thailand to deceive any persons. 

An examination on the provision of Zipup/ZipUp+ services, which offer returns in the form of bonus reward for users of Z Wallet on the digital asset exchange of Zipmex Thailand, showed that the company had notified changes to the terms and conditions of the ZipUp+ services whereby the services of Zipmex Thailand were transferred to Zipmex Asia Pte. Ltd., Singapore (Zipmex Asia) and/or other affiliated companies as designated, effective from 8 May 2022, and the Z Wallet deposit and withdrawal system of Zipmex Thailand was suspended.

According to the SEC’s findings, digital assets of Zipmex Thailand clients in Z Wallet had been transferred to the destination digital wallets overseas even before Zipmex Thailand notified changes to the terms and conditions of its services, which did not align with the facts confirmed by Zipmex Thailand. Therefore, it is considered that Zipmex Thailand deceived by presenting false statements and concealing facts that should have been disclosed to its clients, which led the clients to use Zipup/ZipUp+ services by transferring digital assets into Z Wallet, believing that their assets had not been transferred elsewhere for other benefits. Akalarp, in his capacity as a director and CEO of Zipmex Thailand at the time, acted in a manner liable to be an offense under Section 82 of the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 (2018). 

Furthermore, the fact that Zipmex Thailand, which is responsible for submitting reports on its clients’ assets in accordance with the SEC’s regulations, provided reports with information that did not align with the facts found by the SEC’s examination, is considered an offense of making false entries or omitting material statements in the accounts or documents of, or related to, a juristic person. This constitutes a violation under Section 88 of the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 (2018). The SEC has therefore filed the criminal complaint with the ECD for consideration of further legal action. 

In any case, filing a criminal complaint is merely the commencement of the criminal procedure. The process of determining whether a person has committed a legal offense involves the investigative powers of inquiry officer, the decision to prosecute by public prosecutors, and ultimately the judicial discretion of the court in rendering a verdict. In this regard, the SEC will monitor the progress of the ongoing legal proceedings and collaborate fully with relevant authorities in subsequent processes after the filing of the criminal complaint to support law enforcement under the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2018. 

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No. 33 / 2024 Thursday 8 February 2024
SEC files a criminal complaint against former director and CEO of Zipmex for making false statements or concealing facts that should have been disclosed to the public

Bangkok, 8 February 2024 – The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a criminal complaint against Mr. Akalarp Yimwilai, former director and chief executive officer (CEO) responsible for the operation of Zipmex Co., Ltd. or Zipmex Thailand, with the Economic Crime Suppression Division of the Royal Thai Police (ECD). The complaint involves making false statements in a dishonest and deceitful manner, or concealing facts that should have been disclosed to the public, which has led to obtaining assets from the public. Additionally, the case includes committing or permitting false entries or failing to enter material statements in the accounts or documents of Zipmex Thailand to deceive any persons. 

An examination on the provision of Zipup/ZipUp+ services, which offer returns in the form of bonus reward for users of Z Wallet on the digital asset exchange of Zipmex Thailand, showed that the company had notified changes to the terms and conditions of the ZipUp+ services whereby the services of Zipmex Thailand were transferred to Zipmex Asia Pte. Ltd., Singapore (Zipmex Asia) and/or other affiliated companies as designated, effective from 8 May 2022, and the Z Wallet deposit and withdrawal system of Zipmex Thailand was suspended.

According to the SEC’s findings, digital assets of Zipmex Thailand clients in Z Wallet had been transferred to the destination digital wallets overseas even before Zipmex Thailand notified changes to the terms and conditions of its services, which did not align with the facts confirmed by Zipmex Thailand. Therefore, it is considered that Zipmex Thailand deceived by presenting false statements and concealing facts that should have been disclosed to its clients, which led the clients to use Zipup/ZipUp+ services by transferring digital assets into Z Wallet, believing that their assets had not been transferred elsewhere for other benefits. Akalarp, in his capacity as a director and CEO of Zipmex Thailand at the time, acted in a manner liable to be an offense under Section 82 of the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 (2018). 

Furthermore, the fact that Zipmex Thailand, which is responsible for submitting reports on its clients’ assets in accordance with the SEC’s regulations, provided reports with information that did not align with the facts found by the SEC’s examination, is considered an offense of making false entries or omitting material statements in the accounts or documents of, or related to, a juristic person. This constitutes a violation under Section 88 of the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 (2018). The SEC has therefore filed the criminal complaint with the ECD for consideration of further legal action. 

In any case, filing a criminal complaint is merely the commencement of the criminal procedure. The process of determining whether a person has committed a legal offense involves the investigative powers of inquiry officer, the decision to prosecute by public prosecutors, and ultimately the judicial discretion of the court in rendering a verdict. In this regard, the SEC will monitor the progress of the ongoing legal proceedings and collaborate fully with relevant authorities in subsequent processes after the filing of the criminal complaint to support law enforcement under the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2018. 

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