10 entries tagged “cftc”.
A purported crypto hedge fund that promised ~1% daily returns from an 'EX BOT' trading robot. The SEC and DOJ called it a Ponzi scheme with ~$40M+ in investor losses; head trader Joshua David Nicholas pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 51 months.
Sole owner of Control-Finance Ltd, a UK-based Bitcoin 'trading' operation the CFTC called a fraud. He solicited ~22,858 BTC (~$147M) in 2017 promising guaranteed profits, made no trades, and misappropriated the funds. A 2021 default judgment ordered $143M restitution + $429M in penalties.
Co-founder and CEO of the collapsed crypto lender Voyager Digital. In 2023 the CFTC and FTC sued him for fraud — alleging he falsely marketed Voyager as a 'safe haven' with FDIC-insured deposits. He settled in 2025 (civil), accepting bans and payments.
Founder of My Big Coin, a virtual currency he falsely marketed as gold-backed and partnered with MasterCard. A jury convicted him in 2022 of wire fraud and related counts; he was sentenced in 2023 to 100 months in prison and ~$7.6M in restitution and forfeiture.
A fraudulent virtual currency (MBC) marketed 2014–2017 as gold-backed and tradeable. Founder Randall Crater was convicted of wire fraud in 2022 and sentenced to over eight years; courts ordered ~$7.6M in restitution/forfeiture.
Founder and CEO of EminiFX, a purported crypto and forex 'Robo-Advisor' platform. He pleaded guilty to commodities fraud over a scheme that took more than $248M from 25,000+ investors and was sentenced in 2023 to nine years in prison.
Founder and CEO of Mirror Trading International (MTI). A U.S. court ordered him to pay over $1.7B in restitution for the largest Bitcoin fraud the CFTC has charged. He was detained in Brazil and reported to have died in 2024.
A UK-registered operation that the CFTC says fraudulently solicited at least 22,858 BTC (~$147M) from more than 1,000 customers in 2017 by falsely claiming expert trading and referral rewards. A U.S. court entered a default judgment against principal Benjamin Reynolds.
A self-described 'investment club' led by Eddy Alexandre claiming a secret bot produced 5–9.99% weekly returns. DOJ/CFTC said it was a Ponzi/MLM that mainly targeted the Haitian-American community; ~25,000 investors put in ~$250M. Alexandre got 9 years.
A South Africa-based operation that accepted only Bitcoin for a 'commodity pool' it claimed a bot traded. The CFTC called it the largest Bitcoin fraud it has charged — at least 29,421 BTC (~$1.7B) from 23,000+ people.