The Department of Economic Investigations for the Aktobe region has shut down a financial pyramid scheme that was disguised as an investment project «Harmony RiderTechnology» (HRT).
According to the press service of the regional prosecutor's office, the organisation presented itself as an American company supposedly involved in electric scooter rentals, and promised citizens a daily income of 12 to 690 US dollars.
At the same time, investors were promised bonuses in cryptocurrency for attracting new investors. In practice, payments were made using funds from new investors, which is a characteristic sign of a financial pyramid.
As a result of the fraudulent scheme, more than 100 people lost 197 million tenge. The perpetrators transferred the stolen money to cryptocurrency wallets, and then to personal bank accounts.
«As part of the criminal case, property worth more than 70 million tenge has been seized. The investigation has been completed, and the case materials have been sent to court», the statement said.
It will be recalled that earlier in Almaty, the activities of financial pyramids «Warner Bros», «Roborock» and «NFT+TRX» were disrupted. The average deposit amount in these organisations was 225 thousand tenge, and payments were only accepted in the cryptocurrency USDT.