According to the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), British Benjamin Reynolds swindled 22,000 bitcoins from his customers, according to a press release from the US agency.
Now he has to repay values of almost 5 billion kroner, but the collection of the money can be difficult. US authorities do not know where Reynolds is.
The CFTC announced the news Friday in a press release and referred to a Manhattan federal court ruling that sentenced Reynolds to pay $ 429 million in fines and $ 143 million in restitution.
The Briton is allegedly from Manchester in England, and the fraud is said to have taken place between May and October 2017. Reynolds told his customers that he wanted to ensure a return in the crypto market, but in reality he used the funds for his own gain.
During the scam, Reynolds acquired bitcoins worth $ 143 million – $ 1.2 billion – from more than 1,000 different customers worldwide.
Today, the bitcoin exchange rate is 56,174 dollars, and the current value is thus over 1.2 billion dollars or 10.4 billion kroner.
The scam is referred to as a Ponzi scheme – a well-known pyramid scheme where new investors’ money deposits finance any returns and the money accumulates.
The CFTC has informed the victims of the fraud that the money may not be recovered as it is not certain that Reynolds has the funds available.
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