Over the course of the DOJ’s investigation into OneCoin, the division issued a number of subpoenas.
A few of these subpoenas pertained to electronic mail proof, the publication of which has supplied revealing perception into OneCoin’s operation.
Under are excerpts from emails and different sources of knowledge obtained by the DOJ.
Under, I’ve categorized the DOJ’s proof into related factors of curiosity.
If at any level over the previous 4 and a half years you believed the nonsense popping out of OneCoin HQ, put together to have your thoughts blown.
For everyone else, be sure you seize an additional huge tub of popcorn earlier than studying on…
OneCoin was conceptualized as a Ponzi scheme
Again in 2016 BehindMLM printed an expose into the historical past of OneCoin.
In a nutshell, Ruja Ignatova and Sebastian Greenwood birthed OneCoin out of the collapsed BigCoin Ponzi scheme.
Obtained proof by the DOJ paperwork proof between Ignatova and “Founder-2”.
Primarily based on the next description of Founder-2, I’m assured it refers to Sebastian Greenwood.
In a web based video, Ruja attributed the multilevel advertising and marketing construction plan to Founder-2.
Founder-2 promoted OneCoin, together with at official OneCoin occasions, and self-indentifies as OneCoin’s “Grasp Distributor 001.”
As they had been initially plotting to launch their very own BigCoin Ponzi clone, Ignatova and Greenwood had been but to give you OneCoin.
Denoting the entire cryptocurrency shtick as merely a automobile to proceed to commit Ponzi fraud by way of, OneCoin because it was later generally known as was initially known as “trashy coin”.
Additionally, whereas later she adopted the moniker “CryptoQueen”, Ignatova initially noticed herself because the “bitch of Wall Avenue”.
In the summertime of 2014, Ruja and Founder-2 had been growing the idea and payout plan for OneCoin, which they referred to on the time in electronic mail correspondence as “trashy coin”.
On June 11, 2014, Ruja wrote to Founder-2 regarding the OneCoin marketing strategy:
It may not be [something] actually clear or that I usually work on and even might be happy with (besides with you in personal after we make the cash) – however … I’m particularly good on this very borderline circumstances [sic], the place the issues develop into grey – and also you because the magic gross sales machine – and me as somebody who actually can work with numbers, authorized and again you up in a very good {and professional} approach.
We may actually make it huge – like MLM meets bitch of wall road 😉
And so it was; Greenwood was to give you the MLM aspect of the enterprise, whereas Ignatova would deal with bringing the Ponzi “trashy coin” to market.
Together with “future of cash” (which they copied from BigCoin), Ignatova and Greenwood would later give you a “banking the unbanked” backstory for OneCoin.
Exterior of its enterprise mannequin, put up launch OneCoin’s Ponzi origins had been buried.
OneCoin was by no means about schooling
In a June 11, 2014 electronic mail from Ruja Ignatova to Sebastian Greenwood, Ignatova instructed Greenwood on what he could be promoting;
Your most important gross sales argument is: after 2 splits a member makes out of 5.000 USD 25.000 USD.
You need to have the ability to promote this 🙂
I additionally added an Additional Bonus for all members becoming a member of the Presales … they’ll do truly 3 splits.
Which suggests they’ll even have 10x their funding.
2 splits is 5x your cash. So after all, all people who’s grasping will go in with 5.000 USD.
In an effort to cover the truth that OneCoin was and solely ever was a fraudulent money-making scheme, “schooling packages”, largely copied from Wikipedia and different free informational sources, had been later added to funding packages as pseudo-compliance.
Moreover, for financial institution accounts opened for or on behalf of OneCoin, the said business description was “funding administration”.
Ruja Ignatova deliberate a OneCoin exit-scam earlier than OneCoin had even launched
Coming off of the collapsed BigCoin Ponzi scheme, Ruja Ignatova knew full-well that Ponzi schemes have a restricted shelf-life.
To that finish, on August ninth, 2014, Ignatova despatched Sebastian Greenwood an electronic mail detailing OneCoin “exit-strategies”.
The primary choice that Ruja listed was,
“Take the cash and run and blame somebody for this (customary method, see Wenyard.”
Wenyard above refers to a Ponzi scheme launched in 2013.
Ignatova’s point out of it exhibits that she was following MLM Ponzi schemes whereas collaborating in BigCoin.
The DOJ haven’t printed Ruja’s different deliberate exit-strategies.
Whether or not Ignatova’s chosen “go into hiding underneath the quilt of maternity go away” exit-scam was pre-planned in 2014 is unknown.
OneCoin was conceptualized as manipulable Ponzi factors, there was by no means a cryptocurrency
Regardless of later presenting herself as a cryptocurrency knowledgeable, the reality of it’s Ruja Ignatova knew subsequent to nothing concerning the know-how.
Maybe essentially the most succinct instance of this was Ignatova referring to a “genesis block” as a “guhneesis block” at a OneCoin occasion.
Naturally this meant outsourcing OneCoin growth to another person.
In an electronic mail despatched to builders on June ninth, 2014, Ignatova outlined what she wished;
We’re constructing our personal cryptocurrency – and want to arrange an inner trade service for them.
We wish to have the ability to set the worth manually and robotically and likewise management the traded quantity.
Centrally managed Ponzi factors, as described by Ignatova above, are chalk and cheese when in comparison with precise cryptocurrency.
OneCoin was by no means going to go public
OneCoin going public was a carrot dangled over investor’s heads from day one.
Whereas a large number of excuses had been trotted out through the years for why it by no means did, the reality comes all the way down to Ignatova not desirous to lose management of OneCoin’s worth narrative.
By March 2015 OneCoin’s Ponzi scheme was in full-swing.
A key part to getting individuals to take a position was the fiction that OneCoin factors had been rising in worth.
In an electronic mail despatched to Greenwood on August 1st, 2015, Ignatova reveals how and why the worth of OneCoin was decided.
Targets:
6. Buying and selling coin, steady trade, all the time shut on a excessive value finish of day open day with excessive value, construct confidence – higher manipulation in order that they (buyers) are completely happy.
In an electronic mail despatched to Greenwood on March twenty first, 2015, Ignatova reveals that partly, OneCoin’s inner worth was manipulated by way of faux buying and selling.
We will manipulate the trade by simulating some volatility and intraday pricing [sic].
Regardless of being utterly fraudulent, OneCoin’s fictional worth will increase had been routinely used as advertising and marketing fodder by the corporate and its associates.
OneCoin created factors on demand, they weren’t mined
In early 2017 proof emerged suggesting OneCoin was constructed on a database, versus an precise blockchain.
This permitted OneCoin to create factors on demand, to be distributed to gullible buyers at regardless of the set inner worth was a the time.
Publicly OneCoin denied the allegation, even going as far as to threaten the whistleblower who’d gone public.
Seized emails between Ignatova and Greenwood, courting again to August 2014, expose the deception behind OneCoin’s mining from day one.
Get members to assume that they’re mining their OneCoin by way of crunching (exchanging) tokens for OneCoin.
This storey [sic] is nice as ppl will then not go tremendous loopy and simply attempt to promote tokens on a regular basis.
The dialog continued by way of electronic mail into the next day, with Greenwood stating in an electronic mail to Ignatova dated August twelfth, 2014;
The idea of changing tokens into OneCoin is a crucial section for validity and fact behind the OneCoin.
The so known as ‘mining’ of cash is an idea that may be very acquainted within the business and a narrative we are able to promote to the members.
To which Ignatova replied;
We’re not mining truly – however telling individuals shit.
Specifics of how OneCoin generated its factors on demand had been revealed in a September sixth electronic mail despatched by Ignatova to Greenwood;
Ruja urged that she and Founder-2 ought to resolve upon the variety of OneCoins to be generated each 10 minutes.
Particularly, Ruja urged two situations, considered one of which envisioned that 10,000 OneCoins could be generated each 10 minutes.
At one level within the dialog Greenwood, seemingly reflecting on the deception he and Ignatova had been plotting, expressed concern about being outed.
How can this be investigated and discovered?
Can any member (attempting to be intelligent) discover out that we truly are usually not investing in machines to mine however it’s merely a bit of software program doing this for us?
Because it seems Greenwood’s issues had been legitimate. The reality did finally come out.
Not that it appeared to matter any to OneCoin and their buyers, who until the bitter finish insisted the corporate had an precise blockchain.
Ruja Ignatova acknowledged the launch of OneCoin was not one thing she’d ever be happy with
Usually portrayed as some type of… nicely, “crypto queen”, the reality of it’s Ignatova was simply one other Ponzi scammer – capitalizing on the momentum behind cryptocurrency to steal individuals’s cash.
Maybe the one time Ignatova expressed regret was on the eve of OneCoin’s launch.
In an electronic mail despatched to Greenwood on August twenty second, 2014, Ignatova lamented;
I’m personally very sad – and really feel that the long run, no matter what occurs with onecoin is just not actually an thrilling one – and nothing to be happy with.
I’ve performed mayn [sic] dangerous issues in my life, many silly issues, many issues that had been borderline – however nothing that I used to be partly ashamed of – and it truly destroys a part of who I’m.
The harm is completed. I’ve to someway reside with it. However it’s one thing that basically upsets me.
No matter reservations Ignatova may need had about OneCoin’s pending launch, had been shortly forgotten because the thousands and thousands, and later billions, rolled in from gullible buyers everywhere in the world.
The audits OneCoin claimed to have had performed had been a sham
Though no precise proof of any audit truly going down was ever introduced, OneCoin insisted its non-existent blockchain was commonly audited.
No less than that’s what they instructed their buyers.
An electronic mail dialog between Ignatova and Greenwood from March 2015 reveals “having an auditor in place” is so far as OneCoin ever acquired.
Why?
Pretend cash.
Wrote Ignatova to Greenwood in March, 2015;
We have now an auditor in place – however I believe I can’t begin auditing, as I cheat at the moment on cash, I must discover a approach.
One other dialog in June 2015 particulars spreadsheets, suggesting OneCoin’s factors database may even be extra primitive than first thought.
The spreadsheets determine separate strains for “mined cash,” “mined cash (actual),” and “faux cash.”
The FBI agent who went over the emails believes
the references to “faux cash” in these data discuss with OneCoins that had been distributed to members however didn’t exist within the OneCoin “blockchain”.
I additionally consider Ruja’s March 19, 2015 electronic mail referred to the necessity to “cheat … on cash” can be a reference to the existence of pretend cash on the time.
Because the OneCoin Ponzi scheme started to spiral uncontrolled, faux cash that technically didn’t exist turned a much bigger and larger downside for Ignatova.
Following a promotional occasion held on or round July 2015, Ignatova despatched Greenwood an electronic mail on August sixth;
That is the implication from the massive gross sales 4 weeks in the past. 1.3 [billion] faux cash.
We’re fucked, this got here surprising and now wants severe, severe pondering.
Because it had been, Ignatova’s “severe pondering” noticed the corporate merely enhance faux coin manufacturing.
Sooner or later the faux cash had been merged with the remainder of the non-existent cash, with all people none the wiser.
Konstantin Ignatov and Sebastian Greenwood believed OneCoin buyers had been unintelligent loopy individuals
It’s straightforward to have a look at OneCoin and see how somebody may fall for it.
Because the months of excuses turned to years nevertheless, severe questions as to the intelligence of those that nonetheless believed was a recurring theme.
I don’t imply to sound crass, however at instances there actually was no rationalization apart from plentiful stupidity.
As per a message trade between Konstantin Ignatov and Sebastian Greenwood in September 2016, seems these had been precisely the kind of individuals OneCoin was engineered to attraction to.
Founder-2: These ppl are loopy
Founder-2: Like they wish to converse each hour abt shit
Ignatov: haha they’re. tried to mounted it with him, tried to keep away from bothering you so far as doable. so you aren’t misplaced everying s effective 😉
Founder-2: These ppl are idiots
Ignatov: as you instructed me, the (OneCoin) community wouldn’t work with clever individuals 😉
DealShaker was a canopy for the Ponzi scheme
As a part of the ruse that OneCoin held any worth exterior of the Ponzi scheme, in some unspecified time in the future DealShaker was introduced.
DealShaker was introduced as a service provider platform, nevertheless in actuality proved to be nothing greater than a platform for scammers to record bogus offers and steal gullible investor’s onecoin factors by way of.
Reviewed emails between Ignatova and “OneCoin’s Hong Kong Officer Supervisor”, reveal
quite a lot of OneCoin members in China reported being defrauded of fiat forex in reference to makes an attempt to buy vehicles by way of the DealShaker platform.
The prime motive behind DealShaker’s dysfunction is that the platform was by no means meant to be taken significantly.
In response to the rampant theft occurring by way of DealShaker, Ignatova instructed OneCoin’s Hong Kong workplace supervisor;
I cannot pay for members [sic] stupidity, I’m sorry.
It will set a precedent that’s merely not acceptable.
Solely factor I’m alright to do is to present them onecoins of that worth. Or double the worth.
It was finally determined that Chinese language DealShaker victims could be compensated in nugatory OneCoin.
Ignatova instructed OneCoin’s Hong Kong supervisor to “do what you should do to calm them down”.
One unintentional consequence of DealShaker is that it generally revealed the precise going price of OneCoin factors.
A a lot publicized DealShaker public sale in Romania final 12 months noticed a BMW go for round €40,000 euros in OneCoin.
The stability paid, completely in OneCoin, gave an approximate worth to every OneCoin level paid of round €0.011 EUR.
The made-up inner worth of OneCoin on the time was nicely over €20 EUR every.
OneCoin promptly cancelled the public sale and swept the matter underneath the carpet.
Konstantin was in place to take over from Ruja as early as September, 2016
A collection of messages despatched to Sebastian Greenwood by Ruja Ignatova in September 2016, reveals Konstantin Ignatova was in place to take over from Ignatova within the occasion one thing ought to occur to her.
Ruja: Okay love. Simply landed in frankfurt. Let s hope all will likely be nicely and that i can cross
Ruja: I cannot undergo passport management. However a bit nervous.
Ruja: Such a foul feeling
Ruja: I cross tjrough [sic] airport
Ruja: Frankfurt. Simply landed. After which sofia in 2 hrs. If sth occurs. My brother is aware of what to do and can inform you
Ruja: Hate my life. However have mtgs tonight. Had no alternative in flights
Ruja: Will textual content in 3 hrs when on different aircraft
Greenwood had Ruja listed in his cellular phone as “HRH”, an abbreviation believed to face for “Her Royal Highness”.
Whether or not Ignatova and Greenwood (heart, proper) had been romantically linked has by no means been confirmed.
Ignatova is believed to be married to a German nationwide. The daddy of her purported baby is unknown.
Ignatov in the meantime is believed to have on his particular person always a signed energy of lawyer, pertaining to Ignatova’s belongings.
A Secondary Baggage Examination by US Customs and Border Safety on February twenty seventh, 2019, revealed
a signed energy of lawyer kind granting Konstantin Ignatov the facility to train, amongst different powers, “full management over any and all of [Ruja’s] property,” the facility to “agree, negotiate, and make any settlement, promise or enterprise regarding [Ruja’s] property with any third-party,” and the facility to “seem in [Ruja’s] title and in [her] stead earlier than any competent court docket and authorized or public authority.”
The ability of lawyer kind was signed by Ruja Ignatova and dated February eighth, 2018.
By April 2018, OneCoin had develop into such a convoluted mess that even its accountants had no concept what was happening
In or round April 2018, Konstantin Ignatov despatched and acquired messages to and from an worker who was an accountant at OneCoin.
Within the message trade, Ignatov despatched the OneCoin Accountant two spreadsheets titled “remittance” and “ACCOUNT STS,” and a PDF filed titled “Accounting Opening Particulars”.
Quickly after sending these recordsdata, Ignatov wrote to the OneCoin Accountant,
“These papers ought to be reviewed by you as they might point out that somebody within the firm has been complicit within the transfers.”
In response, the OneCoin Accountant wrote,
“I don’t perceive most of those transfers.
I can let you know solely the incoming ones that I do know of as they had been funds for codes, however the remainder I don’t know.”
No less than one OneCoin witness is cooperating with the DOJ, in trade for a diminished sentence
Jail time is nearly sure for OneCoin executives.
Along with the arrest of Konstantin Ignatov on March sixth, the DOJ have cited a cooperating witness as “CW-1”.
CW-1 has pled responsible to federal crimes pursuant to a cooperation settlement with the Authorities, and is cooperating within the curiosity of obtain a diminished sentence in reference to these crimes.
The one different OneCoin associated arrests we’re conscious of are Mark Scott and Sebastian Greenwood.
So far as I’m conscious Mark Scott has not pled responsible to something.
The authorized standing of Sebastian Greenwood is unknown since he was arrested and extradited from Thailand final November.
CW-1 is both Greenwood or one other at the moment unknown person that has since been arrested.
OneCoin took in upwards of €3.35 billion euros ($3.76 billion USD)
Primarily based on forensic evaluation of recognized OneCoin financial institution accounts throughout Bulgaria, the UAE, Georgia, Germany, the UK, the US, Tanzania, Hong Kong and Singapore, the DOJ consider OneCoin solicited €3.353 billion EUR from buyers.
This quantity was taken in from OneCoin’s launch in 2014 to the third quarter of 2016.
Of the funds invested, round 60% was from China, 18% from Europe and 15% from Australia.
As of December 2016, 3% of OneCoin’s income, totalling round €50 million EUR, has been attributed to the US and Caribbean islands.
Of the €3.353 billion EUR OneCoin took in throughout 2014 to 2016, solely €1.121 billion EUR was paid out.
The DOJ has managed to trace round $1.2 billion USD of OneCoin funding, laundered by way of “not less than 21 completely different international locations”.
In whole, US federal prosecutors have pegged OneCoin investor losses at over $4 billion USD.
Ruja Ignatova was acutely conscious she was being investigated
One irritating side of protecting OneCoin was typically the convenience of which its executives and promoters seemingly evaded authorities.
One doable rationalization is the FBI’s revelation that there’s proof to counsel
Ruja and different OneCoin principals have acquired unauthorized entry to in any other case confidential data concerning legislation enforcement operations.
How OneCoin’s principals may need acquired entry is just not said.
Ruja Ignatova was by no means on maternity go away, she went into hiding and fled Bulgaria on a finances airline on October 2017
When Ruga Ignatova initiated her exit-scam and disappeared, the ruse that surfaced was that she was on maternity go away.
Because the months dragged on, maternity go away turned “prolonged maternity go away”.
Because the months additional dragged on, Konstantin Ignatov coated for his sister by attributing her disappearance to acquired demise threats.
Whereas not unbelievable, OneCoin brought about billions in losses, the reality was way more easy.
Just a few months into her deliberate disappearance in mid 2017, Ignatova boarded a Ryanair flight on October twenty fifth.
The flight was certain for Greece, after which Ignatova’s path goes chilly.
Regardless of additional enquiries into the FBI’s Assistant Authorized Attache in Greece, investigating brokers haven’t been capable of decide whether or not Ruja subsequently traveled to a different jurisdiction from Greece.
Furthermore, the Investigative Workforce has carried out open supply researching concerning Ruja’s on-line presence since in or about October 2017.
Ruja has since made no appearances at any public OneCoin occasions, and has made no public assertion concerning her whereabouts.
In abstract, Ignatova hasn’t been seen or heard from since October 2017.
The FBI has concluded,
based mostly on, amongst different issues, the proof … that Ruja and others have acquired unauthorized entry to delicate data concerning legislation enforcement operations, Ruja’s uncommon journey out of Bulgaria in or about October 2017, and Ruja’s lack of any on-line presence since in or about October 2017, … that Ruja grew involved about doable prosecution and arrest, and took steps to keep away from any such arrest.
Whereas they’ll little doubt get her at some point, for now Ruja Ignatova’s standing is and stays unknown.