Taiwan's Investigation Bureau says it has broken up a wide network of underground money channels feeding cash into this year's local elections, a win for election integrity but a sign of how much dirty money is flowing in.

• Investigators worked 54 cases, searched over 200 locations and questioned 559 people, with 25 held in custody.
• The illegal money flows traced come to about NT$63 billion, of which roughly NT$1.8 billion in criminal proceeds was actually seized.
• Seized items include cash, hundreds of bank accounts, luxury cars, designer bags and watches, a stash of the USDT stablecoin, and 35 properties worth about NT$1 billion.
• The main targets were underground remittance shops, scam and gambling laundering rings, shell companies, and groups buying up Shopee accounts to move money.
• A key worry is Chinese money entering Taiwan through these channels, including Hong Kong operators setting up laundering hubs for offshore gambling sites.

Outlook: With Taiwan's local elections approaching, expect more raids and pressure on candidates to prove their campaign funds are clean.