A US court ordered the founder of Ikkurty Capital to return $84 million to crypto investors

[Carding Forum]

A district court in Illinois ordered the creator of the cryptocurrency hedge fund Ikkurty Capital to pay about $84 million to affected customers. The fund is recognized as a fraudulent project, and investors are considered victims.

Sam Ikkurty managed Ikkurty Capital, Jafia, Rose City Income Fund, Rose City Income Fund II, and Seneca Ventures, according to the indictment. Investors were guaranteed a high profit: from 15% to 2708% per annum, depending on the amount invested. The project team invested the collected funds in various cryptocurrencies, including ETH, OHM and wBTC. At the same time, cryptocurrency hedge funds reallocated funds from new clients to early investors using the pyramid scheme. As a result, later investors did not receive the promised profit.

In 2022, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) accused Sam Iccurti of conducting illegal activities and organizing fraudulent schemes. The businessman claimed that his business was not subject to regulation by the CFTC, since his firms did not trade commodity futures and did not enter into contracts for the sale of goods.

The court rejected Sam Iccourty's request for a summary judgment. The businessman is obliged to pay damages to affected users in the amount of $83.7 million and pay a fine of $36.9 million to the state.

 

[Friend]

The U.S. Securities and Futures Commission (CFTC) has returned $18 million to investors affected by the fraudulent crypto fund Ikkurty Capital as part of a lawsuit with its founder Sam Ikkurty.

The CFTC stressed that the case related to the Ikkurty Capital crypto pyramid scheme will increase the attention of US regulators to the field of cryptocurrencies. The commission called Ikkurti's actions a "classic fraud", with attackers profiting from investors' growing interest in cryptocurrencies and green energy. The agency admitted that crypto investments open up innovative financial opportunities, but unscrupulous people can take advantage of this.

"Ikkurti misled investors by promising them high profits from cryptocurrencies and carbon credits, but in fact left people deceived. The CFTC will continue to fight fraud in the crypto space. By returning money to investors and imposing fines, we protect users and maintain the integrity of the market", the CFTC said.

Earlier, Ikkurti was charged with organizing a fraudulent crypto scheme, where investors were promised high profits. A few months later, the fund's value fell by almost 99%, resulting in significant losses for investors. During the investigation, it turned out that cryptocurrency hedge funds managed by Ikkurti redistributed the funds of new clients to early investors on a pyramid basis, and late investors never received the promised profits. In 2022, the CFTC also accused Ikkurty Capital of failing to register.

In July, U.S. District Judge Mary Rowland, Illinois, ordered Iccurti and related entities to pay a total of $209 million, including $84 million in damages to affected customers and $110 million in administrative fines.