Civil asset recovery

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Civil recovery

Civil recovery orders under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002

Civil recovery proceedings are proceedings whereby an enforcement authority can pursue a civil recovery order (CRO) and associated interim orders freezing property on the basis that the property in question represents ‘recoverable property’. The powers are contained in Part 5 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA 2002).

For the purposes of civil recovery proceedings, recoverable property is defined by POCA 2002, s 304. Where property that represents property obtained through unlawful conduct has been disposed of, if it can be traced then any property which thus represents 'the original property' is also deemed to be 'recoverable property'. For example, if stolen goods are sold for cash, then the cash is recoverable property.

CROs are a significant tool for those seeking to combat acquisitive crime. They facilitate the recovery of the proceeds of crime without the need for a conviction and, therefore, for an offence to be proven to the criminal standard. All that is required is for the court to be satisfied on the balance of probabilities that

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Latest Corporate Crime News

Met Police secures guilty pleas in £5.5bn cryptocurrency seizure case

The Metropolitan Police has secured guilty pleas from two defendants in connection with what it describes as the world's largest cryptocurrency seizure, valued at over £5.5bn. Zhimin Qian, 47, pleaded guilty at Southwark Crown Court on 29 September 2025 to acquiring and possessing criminal property, namely cryptocurrency, under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Hok Seng Ling, 46, pleaded guilty on 30 September 2025 to transferring criminal property, namely cryptocurrency, under the same Act. The convictions follow a seven-year investigation by the Met's Economic Crime team into international money laundering connected to a fraud scheme that defrauded over 128,000 victims in China between 2014-2017. The Met seized 61,000 Bitcoin from Qian, a Chinese national who fled China using false documents and attempted to launder proceeds through UK property purchases. Additional seized assets including encrypted devices, cash, gold and further cryptocurrency were valued at £11m as of July 2025. Sentencing for both defendants is scheduled at Southwark Crown Court on 10-11 November 2025.

Corporate Crime weekly highlights—2 October 2025

This week's edition of Corporate Crime weekly highlights includes analysis of a bank deploying AI tools to detect fraud in light of the newly introduced ‘failure to prevent fraud’ offence, of what the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 means for the UK’s data protection regime and of what this year’s US FCPA cases reveal about future enforcement trends. Also included is news of former UK politician pleading guilty to eight counts under the Bribery Act 2010, of a penalty issued by the OFSI to a company for breaching Russian sanctions regulations, of two consultations launched by the HSE, and of updated Home Office guidance on the use of disclosure orders under POCA 2002. All this, and more, in this week’s Corporate Crime highlights.

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MoJ updates NDA guidance following Victims and Prisoners Act 2024

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