On August 27, lawyer Zhang Qihuai confirmed that Justin Sun had filed a lawsuit against Jing Tian and her parents, seeking the return of more than RMB 30 million (approximately $4.2 million). According to the plaintiff, the money was given as a traditional marriage betrothal payment after the couple began dating, met each other’s families and discussed marriage.
The pair reportedly ended their relationship during the first half of 2026. The lawsuit has been accepted by the court but has not yet proceeded to trial, while Jing Tian has denied the allegations and said she will let the legal process determine the outcome.
While Jing Tian is already a familiar face to Chinese audiences, Justin Sun is better known internationally as a controversial cryptocurrency entrepreneur. So, who exactly is Justin Sun, and how did he become one of China’s best-known crypto billionaires?
Born in China in 1990, Sun Yuchen, better known as Justin Sun, studied at Peking University before earning a master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania in the United States.
According to Forbes, Justin Sun first became interested in Bitcoin in 2012 while studying in the U.S. The following year, he joined Ripple as its chief representative and adviser for the Chinese market. He left the company less than a year later and founded Peiwo, a voice-based social networking application.
Justin Sun’s profile continued to rise. In 2015, he was recognized by CNTV as one of the year’s notable young entrepreneurs and was subsequently included on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Asia list for three consecutive years from 2015 to 2017. His biggest breakthrough came in 2017, when he founded TRON, a blockchain platform designed around decentralized applications and digital payments. Today, his wealth is closely associated with the broader ecosystem surrounding TRON, cryptocurrency exchange HTX, Poloniex and BitTorrent.
According to Forbes’ real-time billionaire ranking cited by the original report on August 27, Justin Sun’s estimated net worth stood at around $8.5 billion, placing him among the world’s roughly 400 wealthiest people.
Justin Sun has also developed a reputation for making extravagant purchases and turning them into global media events. In 2019, he paid approximately $4.57 million for a charity auction lunch with legendary investor Warren Buffett. Although their meeting was initially postponed, Sun and Buffett eventually had dinner together in Omaha, Nebraska, in February 2020.
Justin Sun made headlines again in November 2024 when he spent $6.2 million at Sotheby’s for Comedian, Maurizio Cattelan’s famous conceptual artwork consisting of a banana taped to a wall. True to his promise, Justin Sun later ate the banana. He also spent approximately $28 million in 2021 for a seat on Blue Origin’s New Shepard spacecraft. After years of waiting, Sun eventually flew as part of the NS-34 crew in 2025.
These high-profile purchases have contributed to Justin Sun’s unusual public image: rather than maintaining the low profile associated with many ultra-wealthy individuals, he frequently turns his wealth, business ventures and personal interests into major media spectacles.
The controversy surrounding Justin Sun has expanded beyond his dispute with Jing Tian. Amid the lawsuit, Justin Sun’s former girlfriend, Zeng Ying also known as Tenten, reportedly spoke publicly about their relationship. According to Sina, Zeng Ying claimed that she accompanied Sun Yuchen during his early entrepreneurial years in the United States, when the couple allegedly lived under financially difficult circumstances.
She alleged that Justin Sun once asked her to eat inexpensive salad to save money. Zeng Ying further claimed that after she became malnourished and fainted in a bathroom, Justin Sun allegedly told her that medical treatment in the U.S. was too expensive and encouraged her to endure the situation.
Zeng Ying also claimed that after Justin Sun became successful, he ended their relationship because he believed their social positions were no longer the same. She said he gave her RMB 60,000 as compensation.
Justin Sun subsequently rejected her accusations, alleging that Zeng Ying was using his story and reputation to attract attention. The claims remain allegations from one side and have not been established as facts by a court.
Zeng Ying has made accusations against Justin Sun before. In February, she allegedly accused the billionaire of manipulating the cryptocurrency market by using multiple accounts registered under employees’ names to coordinate transactions, drive up the price of TRX and subsequently sell the holdings for profit. She said she was willing to provide evidence to U.S. authorities. Those claims have not been established by investigators. However, they attracted attention because they overlap in some respects with a separate case involving the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In 2023, the SEC accused Justin Sun and companies associated with him of illegally offering unregistered securities and manipulating TRX trading volume through so-called wash trading. The regulator also alleged that celebrities were paid to promote crypto assets without properly disclosing their compensation. In March, the SEC said it had submitted a comprehensive settlement agreement for court approval. Sun has maintained that the allegations lack a sufficient legal basis.
The latest dispute involving Jing Tian represents a dramatic turn for a relationship that reportedly progressed to discussions of marriage. The lawsuit concerns more than RMB 30 million in alleged betrothal money, but the broader controversy has quickly expanded into a public examination of Justin Sun’s relationships, business history and public persona.
For Jing Tian, the immediate issue remains the court case. The actress has rejected the allegations and indicated that she will rely on the legal process. As of August 28, the court had not issued a final judgment, meaning the claims made by either side should not be treated as legally established facts.
What began as a dispute between two former lovers has consequently become one of the most closely watched celebrity controversies in Chinese entertainment, placing both Jing Tian and Justin Sun under intense public scrutiny.
Sources: znews