back to article BitConnect boss accused of $2.4bn crypto-Ponzi fraud has disappeared

Satish Kumbhani, who is accused of scamming people out of $2.4bn in a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme, has disappeared while evading an American watchdog, a court was told this week. The BitConnect founder fled his home nation of India and went to ground in another country as the US Securities and Exchange Commission sought to …

  1. Winkypop Silver badge
    Facepalm

    Ponzi come

    Ponzi go

    Follow the crypto!

    1. Androgynous Cupboard Silver badge

      Re: Ponzi come

      Mr T Mangrove, of this parish, posted this a few weeks back - so good, I'm repeating it here in case you missed it:

      https://web3isgoinggreat.com/

      The "amount defrauded" counter in the bottom right is... well, priceless I suppose.

    2. katrinab Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: Ponzi come

      No, follow the actual real money which flows from the victims directly into the perpetrator's pocket. The crypto stuff is just a distraction.

  2. silent_count
    Holmes

    Sounds legitimate

    "[...] scheme that promised financial returns of up to 40 per cent per month"

    No way that sounds too good to be true. Where do I sign up?

    1. b0llchit Silver badge
      Pirate

      Re: Sounds legitimate

      See that herd of Unicorns there? Right next to the pot-o-gold at the end of the nice rainbow. They have a terminal there with the most recent cleaning products.

      1. Neil Barnes Silver badge

        Re: Sounds legitimate

        And for some reason I can't quite see, the unicorns seem to be selling bridges.

    2. MiguelC Silver badge

      Re: Sounds legitimate

      Well, he did promise "up to 40%", he didn't tell how much "down to" was.

      Spoiler alert, It turns out it was zero.

      1. katrinab Silver badge
        Megaphone

        Re: Sounds legitimate

        0% is pretty good in the current market. The floor is -100%.

        1. Stoneshop

          The floor is -100%.

          Even lower because of those ever-present transaction fees.

        2. Blank Reg

          Re: Sounds legitimate

          Unless you're short selling, then the sky is the limit

  3. DS999 Silver badge

    Is the SEC really his biggest problem?

    If you steal $2.4 million, it probably is.

    If you steal $2.4 billion, there are probably some people who lost tens of millions or more and are not above putting out a hit on whoever stole it from them.

    1. Michael Hoffmann Silver badge
      Joke

      Re: Is the SEC really his biggest problem?

      What you're saying is that one day he may hear a voice out of a dark alley saying "Mister Chrysoprase is VERY upset" and then find his remaining life to be short and full of incident?

      1. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge

        Re: Is the SEC really his biggest problem?

        "Mister Chrysoprase is VERY upset"

        No, no. You've got that wrong. He's not upset. He's very disappointed. And Mr Crysoprase doesn't like to be disappointed...

        1. Michael Hoffmann Silver badge
          Thumb Down

          Re: Is the SEC really his biggest problem?

          Well now you made me walk to the bookshelf and verify:

          It's definitely "very upset" and the rest of the sentence reads "and find the brief remainder of his life full of incident".

          1. David 132 Silver badge
            Thumb Up

            Re: Is the SEC really his biggest problem?

            "Satish Kumbhani? I don't know who you're talking about. My name is Randolph Stippler, and I have papers to prove it..."

            "And wonderful papers they are, Mr Kumbhani."

      2. An_Old_Dog Silver badge

        Re: Is the SEC really his biggest problem?

        "You stole from the wrong man."

    2. Pascal Monett Silver badge

      Ah, the ol' hire a hitman thing

      Better know how to do it right.

      Apparently, hiring on Craigslist is not the best of ideas.

      1. David 132 Silver badge
        Happy

        Re: Ah, the ol' hire a hitman thing

        Absolutely! Everyone with any sense knows to use Angie’s List. That way your hitman has been properly peer-reviewed. “⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ : quick, efficient, even cleaned up afterwards and cancelled the newspaper delivery so as to delay suspicion. Takes most major credit cards. Would use again.”

  4. Fazal Majid

    All cryptocurrencies are Ponzi schemes

    But I repeat myself.

    1. b0llchit Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: All cryptocurrencies are Ponzi schemes

      But I repeat myself.

      That should read: Repeat after me: its a ponzi scheme

      Then everybody will start yelling "its a ponzi scheme" until all 7.8e9 people on earth have said it. You win and all others are simply yelling. That is a ponzi scheme!

    2. Graham 32

      Re: All cryptocurrencies are Ponzi schemes

      I recently heard the term "bigger fool schemes". It's any scheme where you only make money if you can find a bigger fool than you.

      I don't think crypto is a Ponzi scheme, but crypto, NFTs, and Ponzis, are all in the bigger fool group.

    3. doublelayer Silver badge

      Re: All cryptocurrencies are Ponzi schemes

      And this isn't cryptocurrency, it's a straightforward fraud. Had this guy said he had a bot that would trade on the stock market, it would have gone the same way.

      I've said this before too, but a Ponzi scheme is a very specific kind of fraud. Cryptocurrency has seen a lot of fraudsters, often not doing a Ponzi-style fraud. Continually saying that it's a Ponzi scheme when it's a different one only makes it seem like you don't understand what Ponzi schemes are or what cryptocurrency is. It's as if I started calling all crimes burglaries; they would still be crimes and I'd still be correct that they're bad, but I wouldn't convince people because I'm continually using incorrect terms.

  5. chivo243 Silver badge
    Trollface

    Where's Waldo?

    I'm sure that he is in a neutral country, getting plastic surgery... having his finger prints removed... perhaps other things too?!!

  6. DrXym

    It's all a ponzi

    Every single crypto currency, of which there are thousands. They all need suckers to invest so the people who mined / generated the easy coins can exit with a real currency or profit from the transaction fees.

    1. Aristotles slow and dimwitted horse

      Re: It's all a ponzi

      It is. And then said exchange always seems to get "mysteriously hacked" and all the cash disappears.

      Fools and their money though eh...

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    We drew our own money when we were kids

    Seems people prefer others to do it for them these days, for real money.

    1. J. Cook Silver badge

      Re: We drew our own money when we were kids

      How coincidental- Today I received a package containing two sets of (licensed) fantasy coins, which were purchased at a not insignificant expense. One set is a gift, the other is joining my display of other fantasy coins that I've been collecting for a year or so. :)

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: We drew our own money when we were kids

        Yes, and you received something tangible.

  8. iron Silver badge

    > fraudsters... are utilizing increasingly complex schemes to defraud investors

    I disagree, their schemes are really quite simple but unfortunately there's a sucker born every minute.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Hiding place

    He's probably holed up in a Mumbai scam centre, and thus totally invisible to the local Police.

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