About 50 million dollars may have been lost by an international group of investors after putting their money in a Bitcoin investment group called BTC Global.
A report by the South African Sunday Times indicates that "more than 27,500 people" may be affected, with investors spread across South Africa, Australia and the US. UU., Among other areas. According to reports, some victims claimed that they lost up to USD 117,000 in the plan.
A spokesman for the South African Priority Crimes Investigation Directorate, popularly known as the Hawks, said the commercial crimes unit is investigating the matter as a possible Ponzi scheme.
The spokesperson noted that the group was being investigated for not complying with the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Law.
To further complicate the situation, the people who control the official website of BTC Global have published a statement in which they claim that the fund manager of the group, Steven Twain, had disappeared on February 18.
The message also states that there has been no contact since that time.
"Steven did not confirm having received the information or contacted anyone in the leadership or administration team," the message states. "Steven has not made any payments ... If anyone has any information on how we can get in touch with him, contact us and let us know."
However, accusations that BTC Global is a Ponzi scheme have been launched in the past, including a February 16 post on Medium by Jessie Holmes that claimed that Steven Twain is not a real person.
According to reports, the collapse of the investment group triggered a series of death threats against those involved. According to the Times, one of the site administrators, Cheri Ward, has been granted a protection order against a person who claimed that Ward was responsible for the scam.