DOJ program to provide compensation to qualifying individuals of international scheme
The FBI is encouraging victims of the OneCoin international cryptocurrency investment scheme whose investments resulted in a net loss to apply for compensation through a special Department of Justice (DOJ) program before the June 30 deadline.
“Misled by falsified statements and empty promises, many unknowingly depleted their savings for a fraudulent investment scheme in an emerging financial ecosystem that would never pay out,” said FBI New York Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. in a DOJ press release about the announcement. “With the unwavering support from the Department of Justice, the FBI maintains its commitment to returning these stolen funds to their rightful owners.”
The Justice Department launched the remissions process and an official website, onecoinremission.com, for the initiative, on April 13.
The process allows individuals who purchased OneCoin between 2014 and 2019 and incurred pecuniary losses directly resulting from the OneCoin scheme to file petitions to receive compensation.
Victims can file petitions by mail, email, or an online form, the program’s official website explains. However, filing a petition doesn’t guarantee financial compensation.
The scam
In approximately 2014, Ruja Ignatova and her partner, Karl Sebastian Greenwood, co-founded OneCoin, a Bulgarian-based company that was marketed as a new virtual currency that would be the “Bitcoin killer.”
“The pitch was that if you missed the boat on Bitcoin, OneCoin was an opportunity to get in on the ground level of the next big cryptocurrency,” said FBI New York Special Agent Ronald Shimko, who was previously the case agent in this investigation for almost 10 years. “The promise was that the value of OneCoin was going to continue to increase and people would accept it as a form of payment.”
Ignatova capitalized on the excitement surrounding cryptocurrencies to draw in new investors, promoting OneCoin at large-scale conferences and events worldwide. Ignatova and Greenwood ultimately created a multi-level marketing strategy to encourage existing investors to sell OneCoin packages to their friends and family, who, after investing themselves, were then encouraged to do the same with their friends and family.
“An investor would buy a OneCoin package that would give them tokens to mine OneCoin,” said Shimko. “Then they could turn around and sell packages to friends, family, and others and make a commission off of that. They used this multi-level marketing strategy to drive rapid growth.”
At the end of the day, the OneCoin investments were worthless, and investors collectively lost the equivalent of more than $4 billion.
“With the unwavering support from the Department of Justice, the FBI maintains its commitment to returning these stolen funds to their rightful owners.”
James C. Barnacle Jr., FBI New York Assistant Director in Charge
Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud; Wire Fraud; Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering; Conspiracy to Commit Securities Fraud; Securities Fraud
The search continues
The U.S. Department of State’s Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Ignatova.
“She’s well-funded and well-connected with overseas actors, ranging from organized crime to state-sponsored actors,” said FBI New York Supervisory Special Agent Jonathan Luca. “There’s a reason why she’s been very hard to catch for such a long period of time. We’ve heavily engaged and appreciate all the cooperation from our partners on a global scale.”
The IRS and DOJ have also contributed to this investigation.
You can view Ignatova’s FBI most wanted poster or listen to an archival episode of our Inside the FBI Podcast to learn more about her and her alleged crimes.
If you have information about her potential whereabouts, you can submit a tip to the FBI by:
- calling 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324)
- visiting tips.fbi.gov and sending us an online tip
- contacting your local FBI field office if you’re based in the U.S or your nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate if you’re located overseas
Greenwood was arrested at his residence on the island of Koh Samui, Thailand, in July 2018, and was extradited to the U.S. to face fraud and money laundering charges in October 2018. On September 12, 2023, Greenwood was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Reporting cryptocurrency scams
If you feel that you are a victim of a cryptocurrency investment fraud, we urge you to file a report at FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. Be sure to stop sending any money to the suspected criminals, and do not notify the suspected criminals of the FBI’s involvement, as that may compromise law enforcement’s ability to investigate.
“Every bit of information is helpful at the end of the day to investigators,” said Luca.
Learn more about cryptocurrency investment fraud.