Following the $4 billion OneCoin fraud scheme, the US Department of Justice has established a $40 million compensation fund using seized assets, allowing victims to seek restitution. The scheme, which operated from 2014 to 2019, involved co-founders Ignatova and Karl Sebastian Greenwood deceiving up to 3.4 million investors globally. OneCoin Ltd. marketed a fake cryptocurrency through a worldwide multi-level marketing network, with investors losing over $4 billion.
The operation, deemed 'one of the largest global fraud schemes in history', collapsed in 2017 after Ignatova and her team manipulated the perceived value of OneCoin. In 2022, Greenwood admitted to federal wire fraud and money laundering charges. According to US Attorney Jay Clayton, 'OneCoin's founders sold a false promise disguised as cryptocurrency, resulting in losses of over $4 billion worldwide.' The DOJ will continue to prioritize seizing criminal proceeds and returning funds to victims.
This development comes after the FTX Recovery Trust announced a $2.2 billion distribution to creditors, as part of a broader effort to recover assets for users of the collapsed crypto trading platform.