# The Epoch Times

Type: Company

Source: Legal & RegTech Intelligence Brief — https://getlegalbrief.com/entity/the-epoch-times
Canonical HTML page: https://getlegalbrief.com/entity/the-epoch-times

## Timeline

- **2026-08-31**: Compliance deadline — The 30 institutions must report what action they have taken to address foreign research ties or risk losing eligibility for future federal research funding.
- **2026-08-26**: Media reports name implicated universities — The Epoch Times and ZeroHedge publish coverage highlighting a DefenseScoop-reported list of institutions including Harvard, MIT, and UC Berkeley.
- **2026-08-24**: CASI publishes 204-interaction study — The Air Force-affiliated China Aerospace Studies Institute releases a study cataloging 204 U.S. institution-level interactions with China's Defense Science and Technology Key Laboratories.
- **2026-08-17**: Pentagon orders 30 universities to review foreign ties — The Defense Department directs specified U.S. institutions to examine academic, financial, and research relationships with foreign entities of concern and report actions by Aug. 31.
- **2026-07-09**: Guilty plea — During jury selection in his money laundering trial, Bill Guan pleads guilty to one count of conspiracy relating to illegal financial transactions.
- **2026-07-09**: Guilty plea — Guan pleads guilty to conspiracy during jury selection in Manhattan federal court.
- **2020**: Scheme begins — Guan and the “Make Money Online” team start using cryptocurrency to purchase stolen unemployment benefits and other crime proceeds, laundering funds through Epoch Times accounts.
- **2020**: Scheme initiated — Guan’s team begins purchasing crime proceeds with cryptocurrency.

## Recent coverage (3 stories)

### 30 US Universities Face Aug 31 Deadline on 204 China Lab Ties
2026-08-27 02:16:13 · Sentiment: Neutral · Impact: 6/10 · Sources: 2

For university counsel and compliance officers, the Pentagon's order creates a short-fuse regulatory review: 30 institutions must examine foreign research relationships and report by Aug. 31, 2026 or risk losing eligibility for future federal funding. CASI's study of 204 U.S. interactions with China's top military labs supplies a de facto risk map—and a potential enforcement roadmap—for regulators and universities alike.
Full story: https://getlegalbrief.com/story/us-universities-china-lab-ties-compliance-aug31

### CFO Guilty Plea in $67M Crypto Laundering Case: 10-Year Max Sentence Looms
2026-07-12 01:42:46 · Sentiment: Negative · Impact: 6/10 · Sources: 5

Weidong Guan’s mid-jury-selection guilty plea in a $67M money laundering conspiracy underscores the growing intersection of cryptocurrency and pandemic fraud. For legal professionals, the case highlights DOJ’s aggressive use of conspiracy charges and the strategic calculus of plea deals.
Full story: https://getlegalbrief.com/story/epoch-times-cfo-guilty-67m-crypto-laundering

### Ex-Epoch Times CFO faces up to 10 years after $67M laundering guilty plea
2026-07-10 03:14:46 · Sentiment: Neutral · Impact: 8/10 · Sources: 3

Former Epoch Times CFO Bill Guan abruptly pleaded guilty mid-trial to a conspiracy charge in a $67 million money laundering scheme involving stolen unemployment benefits and cryptocurrency. The plea limits his exposure to 10 years, but the case exposes significant weaknesses in pandemic-era benefit programs and raises questions about corporate governance at the media organization.
Full story: https://getlegalbrief.com/story/epoch-times-cfo-guilty-plea-67m-money-laundering

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