Braiscompany and other Brazilian cryptocurrency companies allegedly used pyramid schemes to dupe Brazilian investors out of millions. Victims ask for compensation for having been deceived.
Several recent fraud victims came out to denounce 20 Brazilian cryptocurrency companies.
According to a survey published yesterday by the news Fantastic, a total of 2.7 million Brazilian investors would have been defrauded of 100 billion reais (20 billion dollars) in pyramid schemes in six years. The survey included the testimonies of investors, including the Brazilian world champion boxer, Acelino Popรณ, who was a victim of one of these Braiscompany scams.
Braiscompany describes itself on its website as a digital asset manager and its mission is supposedly to promote financial freedom. Braiscompany promoted its business image and its success in managing cryptocurrency assets through social media, through its account and the founder's online presence.
The founder and CEO of the company, Antonio Neto Ais, was a key figure in the dissemination of the company on social networks. Through his Instagram with 769,000 followers, Neto showed images of a luxurious and successful lifestyle, and regularly communicated with investors through live broadcasts assuring them of his experience. Neto encouraged viewers to make investments with promises of high returns, one of whom was Acelino Popรณ.
In January, the company closed all profit returns to investors. In February, the company ceased all operations due to a court order, and Neto posted a statement on Instagram on March 16.th ensuring that despite the court order they will remain firm, and attributed the company's problems to the failure of FTX, a company that operated a cryptocurrency exchange and a crypto hedge fund that is now bankrupt.
Since then, the CEO of Braiscompany and his family moved to Argentina, thus avoiding the arrest warrant issued in August.
According to this court order, approximately $400 million in cryptocurrencies have been transferred to Braiscompany accounts in the last four years, which is progressively Arrested by Brazilian police.. One of those accused in the case has been arrested in Argentina, where he is being prosecuted.
Braiscompany is not the only company in Brazil that takes advantage of the crypto market to deceive investors, as Brazilian police are investigating 20 companies according to the survey.
One of these companies, GAS, allegedly obtained millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies fraudulently and had a CEO, Glaidson dos Santos, who allegedly conspired to murder one of its competitors, according to an investigation by the Public Ministry and reported by Balloon.
In August, the general director of GAS, known as โthe pharaoh of bitcoin,โ was fined 34 billion reais and declared unable to operate in the capital market for eight and a half years by the National Stock Market Commission for fraudulent stock market operations.
