EmpiresX ‘head trader’ to face 4 years of jail over $100M crypto ‘Ponzi’

By Clark

Two alternative associates that helped run the U.S.-based dishonest crypto platform EmpiresX left the country early this year and are believed to be in Brazil.

One of the leading figures condemned for being behind the $100 million crypto “Ponzi” theme, EmpiresX, has simply been handed over a four-year jail sentence by a U.S. court.

The sentencing was handed to Joshua David Nicholas, the “head trader” of acknowledged crypto platform EmpiresX, who is now set to serve a 51-month jail sentence beside 3 years of supervised unharness for his role within the enterprise.

It follows a Sept. 8 guilty plea from a Nicholas for conspiracy to commit securities fraud.

According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), over a biennial amount, saint created claims the platform would build daily “guaranteed” returns employing a commerce larva that utilised “artificial and human intelligence” to maximise returns.

In reality, the “bot” was faux, and Nicolas and his associates, Emerson Pires and Flavio Goncalves, operated a “Ponzi” theme that paid earlier investors with cash from later investors. The DOj alleges blockchain analytics shows Pires and Goncalves, each Brazilian nationals, laundered investors’ funds through a “foreign-based” crypto exchange.

Only around $1 million of capitalist funds were sent to a futures commerce account for EmpiresX with the bulk of funds either lost or embezzled per the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) that filed civil actions against the 3 in June.

At the same time, fraud charges were leveled against the trio by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that aforesaid capitalist cash was wont to “lease a Lamborghini, frequent artist & Co., build a payment on a second home, and more.”

Investors were additionally told EmpiresX was registered with the SEC as a hedge fund which saint was a authorized merchant.

The SEC aforesaid the platform was ne’er registered with the Commission and Nicholas’ was suspended from commerce by the National Futures Association for misappropriating Customer funds.

The theme ran for 2 years, from around Sept 2020 till early 2022 once it fell apart because the platform refused to honor client withdrawals WHO were possible eager to leave the crypto market thanks to vital worth drawdowns that began at the time.

Pires and Goncalves, WHO were residing in Everglade State, allegedly began winding down the operations of EmpiresX in early 2022 and left the U.S., they’re currently believed to be in Brazil.