U.S. charges exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui with fraud

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. government on Wednesday charged exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui with fraud, accusing him of orchestrating a conspiracy to defraud his online followers out of more than $1 billion.

The U.S. Department of Justice also said it has seized about $634 million of proceeds from Guo's alleged fraud.

Guo was arrested on Wednesday morning. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed related civil charges.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)