The Strange Case Of The The Missing Crypto-Queen

The BBC Sounds audio streaming service recently released an investigative podcast hosted by Jamie Bartlett all about Dr Ruja Ignatova (pictured) . She is the woman alleged to be behind what could be the largest crypto-currency scam of all time. The US Department of Justice called it, "old fashioned pyramid scheme on a new school platform". In 2017, Ruja disappeared. She hasn't been seen since.

The podcast investigates what happened after she vanished, as the team travels to Germany, Uganda and Bulgaria in search of the self-proclaimed 'Cryptoqueen'. 

By 2016, Ruja’s company OneCoin, claimed to have more than 3.5million users worldwide, plus hundreds of thousands of investors who were promised huge returns. The BBC reports that investors from the UK alone put at least £26m into the scam over one six-month window in 2016. 

The authorities have now arrested one leader of OneCoin, but the main leader Dr Ruja Ignatova has still not been found. Her brother Konstantin Ignatova was arrested on a wire fraud conspiracy charge and Ruja Ignatova is currently at large. In The Missing Cryptoqueen, Jamie Bartlett investigates the woman behind OneCoin, a scheme which managed to persuade investors around the world to part with as much as £4bn ($4.9bn)

OneCoin, a Bulgaria-based company, was founded in 2014 and still has operations running today, according to the indictment. 

The company gave users a commission if they could convince others to buy OneCoin cryptocurrency, taking the familiar shape of a multi-level marketing scheme. It claimed to have over 3 million members worldwide, despite having no functional blockchain or public ledger.

Manhattan attorney Geoffrey Berman says in a government press release that the OneCoin leaders created a multibillion-dollar company “based completely on lies and deceit.” In a brief period between 2014 and 2016, OneCoin made €3.353 billion (roughly $3.7 billion) in revenue. Prosecutors allege that the leaders lied to investors to inflate the value of a OneCoin from half a euro ($0.56) to almost 30 euros ($33.65) as of January this year. In reality, the leaders of the project emailed each other saying that they planned to “take the money and run and blame someone else for this.” 

“These defendants executed an old-school pyramid scheme on a new-school platform,” New York County District Attorney Cyrus Vance said in a statement.

US authorities found in their investigation that OneCoin claimed to have a digital ledger for recording crypto-currency transactions, but there wasn’t a public one that could be verified. In 2015, Ignatova started to give members of her project fake OneCoin tokens to sell, aptly calling them “fake coins.”

When members of OneCoin recently asked Ignatov when they would be able to cash out on their tokens, he allegedly responded, “if you are here to cash out, leave this room now, because you don’t understand what this project is about.”
OneCoin is known to be potentially fraudulent in various countries, including in the UK, Germany, Finland, India, China, and Bulgaria.  Many authorities have warned about its behaviors and even attempted to halt the company’s operations. 

Mark Scott, another person who assisted in the OneCoin project, was indicted last summer and faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. Ignatov also faces 20 years in prison, while Ignatova faces five separate charges, which could add to up a maximum of 85 years in prison if she’s found guilty on all counts.

The investigation by the team behind the podcast has uncovered just how successful OneCoin had been in spreading its message around the world. Internal documents reveal that people in 175 countries invested, with much of the money coming in a six-month period in 2016 when Dr Ruja was on a global tour, including a Wembley appearance.

In the UK, £26m was invested in that period, and the podcast team reckons that the total coming from British investors may have been as high as £96m.

But the documents show that €427m came from China in 2016, with people in South Korea, Hong Kong and Germany also keen investors. Even in poorer countries like Vietnam, Bangladesh and Uganda, people parted with substantial sums. 

Earlier this year in the United States, Dr Ignatova was charged in absentia with money laundering, with the Department of Justice calling OneCoin an old-fashioned pyramid scheme.

The Verge:       BBC:        Cosmopolitan

You Might Also Read: 

Jamie Bartlett: Tech Will Change Us:

The Future Of Cash (£):         

So Much Hot Air About Virtual Currencies:

 

 

« Governments Urge Facebook To Create Backdoor Access To Encrypted Messages
Hackers Invade Routers To Steal Payment Card Details »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

Clayden Law

Clayden Law

Clayden Law advise global businesses that buy and sell technology products and services. We are experts in information technology, data privacy and cybersecurity law.

DigitalStakeout

DigitalStakeout

DigitalStakeout enables cyber security professionals to reduce cyber risk to their organization with proactive security solutions, providing immediate improvement in security posture and ROI.

Resecurity

Resecurity

Resecurity is a cybersecurity company that delivers a unified platform for endpoint protection, risk management, and cyber threat intelligence.

Alvacomm

Alvacomm

Alvacomm offers holistic VIP cybersecurity services, providing comprehensive protection against cyber threats. Our solutions include risk assessment, threat detection, incident response.

MIRACL

MIRACL

MIRACL provides the world’s only single step Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) which can replace passwords on 100% of mobiles, desktops or even Smart TVs.

ProfitBricks

ProfitBricks

ProfitBricks is a secure cloud computing infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) solution.

StickyMinds

StickyMinds

StickyMinds is the web's first interactive testing community exclusively engaged in improving software quality throughout the software development lifecycle.

KnowBe4

KnowBe4

KnowBe4 is an integrated platform for security awareness training combined with simulated phishing attacks.

Cambridge Intelligence

Cambridge Intelligence

Cambridge Intelligence are experts in network visualization and finding hidden trends in complex connected data. Applications include cybersecurity.

Texplained

Texplained

Texplained specializes in security audits of microchips to identify vulnerabilities and protect against invasive cyber attacks.

Duo Security

Duo Security

Duo combines security expertise with a user-centered philosophy to provide two-factor authentication, endpoint remediation and secure single sign-on tools.

Accel

Accel

Accel is a leading venture capital firm that invests in people and their companies from the earliest days through all phases of private company growth. Areas of focus include cybersecurity.

Nucleon Security

Nucleon Security

Nucleon Endpoint Detection and Response EDR is the most effective way to protect the value created by your organization against any threat.

Cyrebro

Cyrebro

CYREBRO is your online cybersecurity central command managed SOC that integrates all your security events with strategic monitoring, proactive threat intelligence, and rapid incident response.

Hubify

Hubify

Hubify is an experienced, service-driven technology company specialising in business connectivity across mobile, data, voice, cloud, & cyber security solutions.

Red Access

Red Access

Red Access provides the first SaaS-based platform to protect web browsing from cyber threats on any browser and any in-app while ensuring frictionless user experience.

MailChannels

MailChannels

MailChannels protects companies against malicious email threats. Used by 750+ hosting providers around the world.

Digistor

Digistor

Digistor is a leading manufacturer of industrial-grade flash storage products, secure storage products, and Removable Secure Data Storage.

Onwardly

Onwardly

For everyday folks tasked with implementing security and privacy. Do it faster with Onwardly - build, launch and scale your cyber resilience program in 30 minutes per week.

Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (HC3)

Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (HC3)

HC3 was created by the US Department of Health and Human Services to aid in the protection of vital, controlled, healthcare-related information.

Sectricity

Sectricity

As independent ethical hackers, Sectricity go beyond traditional security, uncovering every vulnerability - testing both systems and employees to eliminate weak spots.