Cryptocurrency project OneCoin is denying claims that it is a “hybrid ponzi-pyramid scheme” and scam, news outlet Samoa Observer reported on May 14. OneCoin is purportedly a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme project, that raised hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide by luring investors with the promise of big returns and minimal risk. An investigation by the United States found that the project’s founders had generated 3.353 billion euros ($3.769 billion) in sales revenue. In April, a church in the Pacific nation of Samoa became at the center of scrutiny after ministers had invited OneCoin to speak to its congregation. Notably, Samoa’s …

Former OneCoin investor Christine Grablis is suing the cryptocurrency investment scheme for fraud, according to a complaint filed on May 7. Grablis is seeking damages and a class action suit to represent other investors purportedly defrauded by OneCoin. The full list of defendants in this lawsuit — Grablis v. OneCoin Ltd. — includes OneCoin Ltd, Ruja Ignatova, Konstantin Ignatov, Sebastian Greenwood, Mark Scott, along with other potential parties who have yet to be named. According to a Bloomberg report on May 7, OneCoin founder Ruja Ignatova has been charged with wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering; Konstantin Ignatova, Ruja’s …

A New Zealand church accused of colluding with a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme in targeting the congregation, has denied knowingly participating in illegal activity in a Facebook statement on May 2. The Samoan Independent Seventh Day Adventist Church (SISDAC) is one of two places of worship accused of having links to OneCoin, which raised hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide by luring investors with the promise of huge returns. According to RadioNZ, the scam specifically targeted New Zealand’s Samoan community — with OneCoin workers using SISDAC and the Samoa Worship Center “to reach a vast network of would-be investors.” One woman …

A church in the Pacific nation of Samoa is at the center of scrutiny after ministers invited notorious cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme OneCoin to preach to its congregation, New Zealand-based media network Radio NZ reported on April 26. OneCoin, which is now all but defunct after the indictment of both its masterminds, raised hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide by luring investors with the promise of huge returns. Samoa’s central bank banned any activities involving the scheme in 2018, but representatives nonetheless succeeded in approaching the Samoa Worship Centre and pitched their likely fraudulent investment product to members. A number of …

Singapore authorities have charged two men for promoting cryptocurrency multi-level marketing (MLM) scheme OneCoin in the first case of its kind for the city state, local daily news outlet Business Times reported on April 10. The two men, who were not named, reportedly engaged in activities involving incorporating a subsidiary to promote OneCoin, as well as signing up new members and taking investments in return for education courses and OneCoin tokens. The case is the latest to afflict OneCoin, which had managed to operate for several years and accrue giant investments before its two Bulgarian founders were indicted by United …

A look at the history of cryptocurrency in 2018 has shown that Bitcoin (BTC) has risen from a “dead” designation in the media 90 times, data from industry news and information portal 99bitcoins shows. According to the site’s fabled Bitcoin Obituaries section, which tracks media claims that Bitcoin has failed, almost 100 such claims surfaced last year as BTC/USD trended down from highs around $20,000 in December 2017 to lows of $3,130 in December 2018. By contrast, a log of altcoins which for various reasons disappeared from the market altogether now contains almost 1,000 entries. The database, Dead Coins, distinguishes …

United Kingdom-based cryptocurrency payment platform Cubits has filed for administration following a sudden outage that locked customer funds, a company press release revealed Dec. 11. The act of filing for administration means that an insolvent company has appointed an external administrator in order to act on behalf of its creditors. Cubits, the trading name of legal entity Dooga Ltd., claimed it had lost funds worth €29 million ($32.8 million) to “fraudsters” in February 2018 that it was unable to reclaim. Now, Dooga has brought in administrators “to work with those who are owed money by the Company and to collect …

The last four suspects in a two year case against alleged pyramid scheme OneCoin have been prosecuted in China’s Hunan Province, government-supported local news source the Justice Network reports Wednesday, May 23. The Zhuzhou Country Procuratorate of the Hunan Province examined 106 people, publicly prosecuted 98, and recovered around 1.7 bln yuan (around $266 mln) from over 20 provinces across China in the course of the case. Those prosecuted have received up to 10,000 - 5 mln yuan in fines (about $1,500 - $782,000) as well as four years or less of prison time. In 2016, Chinese authorities had already …

Cryptocurrencies have revolutionized the way the world looks at transactions - but they’ve also facilitated some monumental scams over the past nine years. The success of Bitcoin and a number of altcoins jumpstarted an industry that is incorporating Blockchain technology in a number of innovative ways. While the smartest minds have created some game-changing companies backed by the power of Blockchain and cryptocurrencies, nefarious minds have also jumped on the bandwagon, fleecing unwitting investors in elaborate scams. ICOs fever spawns massive scams Since Bitcoin’s inception in 2009, people have become increasingly enamoured with the idea of Blockchain technology. Over time, …

Recently, I was offered to join an MLM scheme. Larry Pantling, owner of Capstone Digital Mining, offered me an opportunity to buy a beginner package for mining onecoin, swiscoin or ilcoin. He also gave me some information about the so-called “promotion programs” to involve other people into mining. In other words, I was offered to join an MLM business. Frankly speaking, I’m not new at this; I know how MLM works. But in traditional schemes you at least get some goods in exchange for your money. But what about cryptocurrency MLM? I still don’t get all the mechanisms of crypto …