The FBI recently added Ruja Ignatova, dubbed the “Cryptoqueen,” to its top ten most wanted list and it has bought the OneCoin scam back in the news again. Here are the details about the scam you might have missed out:
What is OneCoin?
OneCoin was a Ponzi scheme that was being promoted as a cryptocurrency by companies with offices in Bulgaria called OneCoin Ltd (registered in Dubai) and OneLife Network Ltd (registered in Belize).
According to US prosecutors, the global revenue from the scheme was almost $4 billion. While prosecuting 98 individuals, Chinese law enforcement recovered 1.7 billion yuan (US$267.5 million).
Who were behind the OneCoin scam?
The OneCoin scam was promoted by Ruja Ignatova and Sebastian Greenwood. Ruja Ignatova vanished in 2017, just before her brother Konstantin Ignatov took over and a covert US arrest order was issued for her. Ruja Ignatova hasn’t been apprehended but was added to the FBI’s most-wanted list recently. Greenwood was detained in 2018, while Konstantin Ignatov was detained in March 2019. Konstantin Ignatov admitted guilt to accusations of fraud and money laundering in November 2019. The charges carry a 90-year prison sentence as their ultimate possible punishment.
How did the OneCoin scam work?
Late 2014 saw the debut of OneCoin.
It was a centralised currency maintained on OneCoin Ltd’s computers rather than a decentralised coin.
OneCoin claimed that its primary line of business was the exchanging of educational…
