Onecoin

Jailed Onecoin Mastermind Accused of Using Contraband Mobile Phone to Move $20 Million

25/11/2021 by Idelto Editor

Karl Sebastian Greenwood, one of the masterminds behind the Onecoin pyramid scheme, recently used a contraband mobile phone to move at least $20 million while holed up in a prison in the United States, an attorney for one of the scheme’s victims has said.

Onecoin Mastermind Taking Advantage of Regulators’ Failures

The lawyer representing victims of the Onecoin scam, Jonathan Levy, has alleged that the pyramid scheme’s jailed co-mastermind, Karl Sebastian Greenwood, recently moved at least $20 million which he insists was stolen from investors.

In a statement released on November 24, 2021, Levy explains how Greenwood, who is currently detained at Manhattan Metropolitan Correctional Center, was able to pull off the transfer. He said Greenwood had been aided by a network of lawyers and a contraband cellphone.

The lawyer also said the failure of the SEC and other regulators to confiscate assets and the 230,000 bitcoins stolen from Onecoin is aiding Greenwood’s cause while making it even more difficult for victims to recover their money. He explained:

I am shocked and dismayed there has been no attempt to confiscate OneCoin assets. We know that vast amounts of cash, real estate, and cryptocurrency have been unlawfully obtained. The brazen acts of Karl Sebastian Greenwood from his jail cell only confirm our worst fears that with every passing day, billions of dollars of assets are being placed beyond hope of recovery.

Contraband Cell Phone

Using numerous Powers of Attorney that were issued in Dubai, Greenwood and Ruja Ignatova, another key mastermind behind the Onecoin pyramid scheme, have successfully managed to get banks to unfreeze bank accounts that held hundreds of millions of dollars. Greenwood allegedly then used a mobile phone that is now in the possession of U.S. law enforcement to remotely execute judgment.

Meanwhile, Levy said he hopes the release of the information about some of Greenwood’s acts while in prison will force regulators in the United States, Bulgaria, and Dubai to finally act against the masterminds.

Do you agree that regulators have not done enough to help the victims of the Onecoin scam? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

Onecoin Victims Petition Bulgaria for Seizure of Assets and Compensation

19/11/2021 by Idelto Editor

A lawyer representing investors defrauded by the notorious crypto scam Onecoin has urged authorities in Bulgaria to act on the case, claiming that the “world’s largest pyramid scheme” is still operating from the country. In a petition with the Bulgarian Constitutional Ombudsman, Jonathan Levy accuses officials in Sofia of failing to provide justice to the victims while seemingly protecting “the most notorious criminal organization.”

Lawyer Slams Bulgarian Authorities for ‘Misfeasance’ in Onecoin Case

In the petition, Dr. Levy points out that Onecoin has been recognized as a criminal enterprise by a number of countries including the United States, Argentina, and Germany, and classified as a pyramid scheme by law enforcement agencies such as the FBI. At the same time, the €20 billion cryptocurrency scam allegedly maintains several offices in the Bulgarian capital, uses a number of corporate identities, continues its operations unabated, and has even held a recruitment event this past summer.

The Crypto Ponzi scheme Onecoin was launched in 2014 and promoted through Bulgaria-based offshore entities Onecoin Ltd, registered in Dubai, and the Belize-incorporated Onelife Network Ltd. Both were founded by the pyramid’s mastermind, Bulgaria-born ‘Crypto Queen’ Dr. Ruja Ignatova, also a German national holding a PhD in European private law, and her partner Sebastian Greenwood from Sweden.

Ignatova disappeared in 2017 while her brother, Konstantin Ignatov, another Onecoin co-founder, was arrested in Los Angeles in 2019 and charged with financial crimes. He has since started cooperating with law enforcement, testified about Onecoin’s association with organized crime in Bulgaria and elsewhere, pleaded guilty, and sought witness protection. The scheme has been linked to terrorism funding as well. A number of people involved in the investigation and legal proceedings, including Ignatov, have complained about receiving legal and other threats.

The document submitted by Jonathan Levy lists a number of other key figures in the scam and claims that “the Ignatovs, Onecoin and their proxies in Bulgaria and Dubai currently control moveable and immoveable property, investments, cryptocurrency, bank accounts and cash exceeding €12.5 billion” ($14.2 billion).

The lawyer slams Bulgarian authorities for their limited actions on the case, recalling a single general warning about Onecoin issued in 2015 by the Financial Supervision Commission, which later ignored the matter, as well as police raids on its offices in Sofia in 2018, ordered by Ivan Geshev who now serves as Bulgaria’s Prosecutor General and conducted on request from Europol and the German police. Levy also states:

We are unaware of any arrests or confiscation of bank accounts, cash, cryptocurrency, or property belonging to the victims. If Bulgarian law enforcement has confiscated assets it has not provided a public accounting or process for victims to be compensated.

According to the legal representative, Onecoin is the largest pyramid scheme in world history, exceeding both the Madoff and Mavrodi pyramids. However, the filed complaint largely concerns itself with Onecoin’s Bulgarian operation, the full extent of which remains unknown, and is “directed at the misfeasance by Bulgarian law enforcement in regard to their EU mandated duty to victims of crime.”

In the petition filed on behalf of clients from a number of countries, including the U.K., U.S., Germany, and Australia, Jonathan Levy highlights that under Article 47 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and similar provisions in Bulgarian law, Onecoin victims should be granted access to justice, which they have not yet received from Bulgaria. He accuses the country, an EU member state, saying it “seemingly protects and enables OneCoin to retain its assets and continue to operate despite being the most notorious criminal organization of the 21st Century.”

Petitioner Urges Bulgaria to Account for Crypto Scam’s Assets, Including Ignatova’s €12 Billion Bitcoin Stash

Levy requests that the Bulgarian Ombudsman investigate the conduct of various government institutions such as the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Ministries of Justice and Interior, and the country’s Financial Intelligence Directorate. He also insists on taking steps to terminate “Onecoin’s open and public operation in Bulgaria that continues to victimize investors worldwide.”

The lawyer further requires assistance from Bulgarian authorities to account for Onecoin assets controlled from within Bulgaria, allegedly consisting, according to the document, of 230,000 bitcoins, cash, yachts, luxury cars, jewelry and precious metals, bank accounts, investments, and real estate, in order to determine if they are still in the possession of Ignatova and her associates or have been seized by Bulgaria.

Jonathan Levy also insists that the government in Sofia fulfill its obligations pertaining to the compensation of Onecoin victims under European law such as Directive 2012/29/EU of the European Parliament and EU Council Directive 2004/80/EC of April 29, 2004.

The petitioner also calls for the “establishment of a monetary reward of up to €1 billion” to encourage associates of Onecoin to step forward and provide information about the crypto investment scam and its activities, “especially in regard to the 230,000 Bitcoins in the possession of Ruja Ignatova or her proxies currently valued at over €12 billion.” The money for that purpose, Dr. Levy suggests, should come from up to 10% of recovered Onecoin assets.

Reports in the Bulgarian press confirm that Onecoin companies in the country are still operational. According to an article by the business daily Capital, the One Network Services entity, formerly owned by Konstantin Ignatov and Ruja’s mother, which runs Onecoin’s main office in central Sofia, is actually expanding its workforce – from 17 employees at the end of last year, to 24 now. The publication reveals that the firm has declared revenues exceeding 2.9 million leva (over $1.7 million) for 2020 with a net profit of 75,000 leva (over $43,000).

The once open crypto center on the ground floor of a building on Slaveykov Square, is now closed but according to Capital, Onecoin leaders have been posting photographs of meetings held there during their visits to Sofia. The active promoters of the cryptocurrency investment scheme that has been rebranded to Oneecosystem, are new faces, and few of them are actually Bulgarians.

Do you expect authorities in Sofia to take action against Onecoin following the victims’ petition of the Bulgarian Ombudsman? Tell us in the comments section below.

Onecoin’s $18.2M London Penthouse: Trial in Germany Reveals ‘Cryptoqueen’ Ruja Ignatova’s Lavish Lifestyle

07/11/2021 by Idelto Editor

The Onecoin Ponzi scheme is still making headlines as reports from a trial in Germany revealed the missing ‘Cryptoqueen,’ Ruja Ignatova, purchased a London penthouse worth $18.2 million with proceeds from the Onecoin operation. The Münster court’s findings stem from the trial against Martin Breidenbach, Ignatova’s German attorney, who is being accused of money laundering.

‘Cryptoqueen’ Ruja Ignatova’s $18.2 Million London Penthouse – Apartment Stuffed With Fine Art, Rare Andy Warhol Piece

Ruja Ignatova, Onecoin’s ‘Cryptoqueen,’ purchased a luxury penthouse apartment in London via a shell company, according to recent reports from the BBC. The report notes that Martin Breidenbach is on trial in Münster, Germany with two other individuals over alleged money laundering charges that are connected to the Onecoin pyramid scheme and Ruja Ignatova. Reports published years ago show that Breidenbach started working with Onecoin in 2014.

The lawyer worked with the law firm Breidenbach Rechtsanwälte and it has been said that the attorney was also the director of Onecoin Limited (Gibraltar) for eight months in 2015, and ostensibly a partner in Cryptoreal firm RSB Central GmbH (Switzerland) as well. Breidenbach’s trial, alongside the findings from the British author, BBC journalist, and “Missing Cryptoqueen” podcast host, Jamie Bartlett, found that shows Ruja Ignatova had extremely expensive taste.

The reports say that the four-bedroom luxury flat kept a number of fine artworks hidden in the apartment, including a rare Andy Warhol piece. The property was purchased by a shell company in 2016 which kept the ‘Cryptoqueen’s’ name out of the picture. Just before she leased the London flat, Ignatova pleaded guilty to a German bankruptcy case. Now Breidenbach is accused of money laundering after transferring €20 million ($23 million) in order to finance the property.

Reports note that the ‘Cryptoqueen’ did stay at the luxury apartment in 2016 but didn’t spend much time there. The property’s owner, as shown on the deed, is called Abbots House Penthouse Limited. Meanwhile, Ruja Ignatova has been missing since 2017 and despite a large worldwide search effort, she has not been found. Onecoin is considered one of the largest crypto-related Ponzi schemes ever and the first as well.

In 2014 the Law Firm Breidenbach Rechtsanwälte Said: ‘In Our Opinion, the Onecoin Is a Legitimate Product’

The German lawyer’s office Breidenbach Rechtsanwälte in 2014 helped legitimize the idea that Onecoin was a cryptocurrency, even though it didn’t have a blockchain or any similarities to any blockchain technology.

“Most countries have recognized cryptocurrencies as a bona fide commodity, which may be held and traded by their citizens,” the law firm Breidenbach Rechtsanwälte opined at the time. “In our opinion, the ‘Onecoin’ is a legitimate product, limited to 2.1 billion (coins),” the law firm added in December 2014.

What do you think about the trial of Martin Breidenbach in Germany and the ‘Cryptoqueen’s’ expensive habits? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comment section below.

Seychelles Examines the Pros and Cons of Licensing Crypto Trading Platforms

10/09/2021 by Idelto Editor

Seychelles’ Financial Services Authority (FSA) together with the country’s finance ministry, is reportedly working on a policy to either prohibit or license crypto trading platforms as registered international businesses.

Increase in International Investigations of Crypto Platforms

According to a report, the move by the FSA happens against the backdrop of a rising number of international investigations into scam crypto trading platforms that have been traced to the island nation. As recently reported by Bitcoin.com News, the Onecoin bitcoin scam became the latest foreign crypto entity to be a target of such an investigation. This after a request for a probe was submitted to the country’s law enforcement.

Meanwhile, in the same report, Randolf Samson, who heads the FSA’s anti-money laundering and terrorist financing section, is quoted explaining the rationale behind the regulator’s move. Samson detailed:

There are many incorporated companies that are facilitating that activity. The reason why they are using Seychelles is because we do not have a framework that would otherwise discourage them. Cryptocurrency developed quite fast but the laws of many countries are not up to date with this type of activity.

Nevertheless, Samson insists that “a risk assessment needs to be carried out to look at the pros and cons” before any final decision is made. Therefore, if the outcome of the so-called risk assessment points to potential benefits for Seychelles, then such trading companies will be licensed, explained Samson.

On the other hand, if the incorporation or licensing of cryptocurrency trading platforms “brings too much risks and bad reputations, we will simply prohibit the activity.”

Crypto’s Growing Popularity

Still, Samson concedes that a decision that results in the prohibition of crypto trading in Seychelles could prove to be an unpopular one. Samson said:

“The problem with cryptocurrency, the way things are going, you will have to take a stance as it is popular among a growing number of people and other countries are taking options to regulate this activity.”

However, if the policy to license crypto trading businesses is adopted, Seychelles will be forced to take on the responsibility of ensuring that individuals and companies are not involved in illicit activities. In any case, such a policy “will also put Seychelles in line with recent Financial Action Task Force (FATF) amendments made in June 2020,” the report concludes.

Should Seychelles license crypto trading platforms that are not based on the island? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

Lawsuit Claims Onecoin’s ‘Cryptoqueen’ Ruja Ignatova Holds 230,000 Bitcoin

14/05/2021 by Idelto Editor

One of the ringleaders of the largest crypto Ponzi schemes, Onecoin’s Ruja Ignatova, otherwise known as the “Cryptoqueen,” allegedly owns 230,000 bitcoin worth over $11 billion today. Court documents filed by victims of the Onecoin scheme indicate that she received the bitcoins from a member of an Emirati royal family in Dubai.

Onecoin’s Cryptoqueen May Have $11 Billion in Bitcoin

Onecoin’s Ruja Ignatova is a mysterious woman who has been on the run for over three years now. Ignatova founded Onecoin in concert with Sebastian Greenwood and her brother, Konstantin Ignatov. The Onecoin Ponzi was a multi-level-marketing (MLM) venture that featured packages that were ostensibly tethered to a blockchain network.

Ignatova and her cohorts told the public that Onecoin would be the most dominant crypto asset and eventually be a “bitcoin killer.” Due to its organizational structure and fraudulent claims, the crypto community immediately warned people about Onecoin’s operations.

Onecoin started on September 16, 2014, and by 2015, Bulgaria’s Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) issued a warning about the project. The Ponzi’s headquarters was Bulgaria-based, however, it was registered as an offshore company in Dubai and its subsidiary Onelife Network was registered in Belize.

At the end of 2016, cracks started to show and investigators said the project never used any type of blockchain technology. In 2017, U.S. law enforcement sent a secret warrant for Ignatova’s arrest and the Cryptoqueen disappeared.

Sebastian Greenwood was arrested in 2018 and her brother Konstantin Ignatov was arrested in Los Angeles in March 2019. Since then, the founders have been dealing with a few court cases as U.S. prosecutors alleged Onecoin fraudulently took in $4 billion from global participants.

Konstantin Ignatov pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering in November 2019 but the Cryptoqueen has never been caught. Now a court filing from victims of the Onecoin scheme shows that Ruja Ignatova may have billions in bitcoin.

Ruja Ignatova’s Dubai Perks and Her Alleged Relationship With a Member of an Emirati Royal Family

Reports indicate that the Cryptoqueen may have an account in Dubai worth $500 million but documents also allege that Ruja Ignatova could have obtained 230,000 BTC. The reports claim that she got the $11 billion worth of bitcoins from Sheik Saoud who is the son of one of the wealthiest individuals in Dubai.

The exact details of the transactions are unclear but the deal allegedly took place in October 2017 when BTC was trading for around $6k per unit. Behind MLM says that the Cryptoqueen’s alleged relationship with Sheik Saoud “came with perks.”

Ruja Ignatova had been able to obtain “Diplomatic credentials” from the Intergovernmental Collaborative Action Fund for Excellence (ICAFE) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Behind MLM’s report stresses “Ignatova was able to travel with impunity.” An article published by financial columnist Rick Steves explains that former real estate agent Mimoun Madani was also involved.

“The Ponzi scheme funneled billions to banks and real estate in Dubai where they were allegedly aided by His Excellency Sheikh Saoud bin Faisal Al Qassimi and a former real estate agent Mimoun Madani,” Steves wrote. The reporter also described the transaction between the wealthy individuals based in the UAE who allegedly gave her thousands of bitcoins. The article notes:

Sheikh Al Qassimi, in a well-documented and witnessed transaction, handed four hard wallets (USB devices) containing 230,000 Bitcoins then worth about $50 million in exchange for the now frozen [Onecoin] bank accounts, other assets, and real estate in the UAE worth perhaps $1 billion.

Behind MLM researchers say that Ignatova’s disappearance has been attributed to a few locations and possibly death. A myriad of reports over the last few years assume Ignatova could be located in the UAE region, Russia or Greece. The researchers further explain that the United Arab Emirates and the United States do not share an extradition treaty.

The attorney representing the victims Dr. Jonathan Levy blames the situation on the digital currency ecosystem in general.

“Regulators seems oblivious to the fact the cryptocurrency’s main purpose is to facilitate and reward criminals like Ruja Ignatova. It is no coincidence that Ignatova is the main beneficiary of the Bitcoin bubble,” Levy, the plaintiff’s attorney stressed.

What do you think about Onecoin’s Ruja Ignatova possibly owning 230,000 bitcoin? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.