Three declared cryptocurrency traders ran a Ponzi scheme which scammed more than 100 investors for over $35 million, according to a lawsuit filed by an entity formed by the victims in a federal court of Florida, Usa.

According to an declaration published on April 2, Q3 Investment Recovery Vehicle, who represents defrauded investors, defendant the trio of alleged crypto traders of cheating victims by promising them a winning trading formula.

Former NYSE and Wells Fargo workers among the accused

The federal securities fraud case names 3 individuals every bit the principal perpetrators of the scheme. They include James Seijas, who worked every bit a fiscal advisor for Wells Fargo until March 2022, Quan Tran, a surgeon, and Michael Ackerman, who was a New York Stock Exchange institutional broker. These three are thought to accept appropriated money from at least twenty victims who relayed their complaints in the court.

The Q3 Recovery Vehicle stated the following:

"The founders claimed, fraudulently, that the investments would exist used to merchandise cryptocurrency using a proprietary and wildly successful algorithm developed by Ackerman."

Less than $x 1000000 was used for crypto trading

According to the complaint, less than $ten million "and possibly less than $5 1000000" of the nerveless investments were used for virtual currency trading. Meanwhile, the defendants allegedly misappropriated at least $xx million for their personal use.

The recovery vehicle claimed that between August 2022 and December 2022, all funds were collected to finance the Ponzi scheme, including posts on a medico-centric Facebook group.

Donna Seijas (wife of James Seijas) and Steve Saunders, who was the vice presidents of operations for Skyway Upper-case letter Markets LLC, are as well mentioned in the complaint.