Turkey arrests Hex founder Richard Heart, seizes $7.15 million in assets

Turkey’s police arrested Richard Heart, the founder of the cryptocurrency Hex, on Thursday in Istanbul and seized $7.15 million in cash, six cold‑storage wallets, seven firearms and 1,400 rounds of ammunition after searching 15 addresses linked to the suspect.

Heart, a self‑styled entrepreneur and former YouTube personality, launched Hex in 2019 as a high‑yield “blockchain certificate of deposit.” The token quickly attracted investors with promises of massive returns, but critics have called it a Ponzi scheme and warned regulators that it may be defrauding users. In the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission has opened an inquiry into Hex’s marketing practices, and several exchanges have delisted the token amid growing scrutiny. Turkish authorities have been monitoring crypto‑related money‑laundering risks since the 2022 crackdown on illicit finance, and Heart’s alleged ties to large cash movements and unregistered securities prompted a coordinated investigation with international partners.

The seizure of the cold wallets, which held an estimated $2 billion worth of Hex and other tokens at current prices, underscores the scale of the operation. Police also recovered a cache of firearms, suggesting the investigation extended beyond financial crimes. A spokesperson for Istanbul’s public prosecutor’s office said the case will move to the anti‑money‑laundering unit, where prosecutors will determine whether to file charges for fraud, illegal weapons possession and tax evasion. Heart’s legal team has not yet commented, but the arrest is likely to reverberate through the crypto community, where Hex remains popular among retail investors.

If formal charges are filed, the case could become a landmark test of how Turkish courts handle cross‑border crypto fraud. Regulators in Europe and the United States are watching closely, as the outcome may shape future enforcement actions against high‑profile token creators. Investors with exposure to Hex may face heightened volatility, and exchanges could tighten compliance checks on similar projects. The investigation is ongoing, and authorities have said they will continue to track the movement of the seized digital assets.