Crypto, Forex ‘Membership’ Scam Pulled in $198 Million, SEC Says

A scam operator enticed investors to buy “membership packages” in his purported cryptocurrency and foreign exchange trading company, but used the money to enrich his family and pay off other investors, the SEC alleges.

The company, Praetorian Group International Corp., was the vehicle for a Ponzi and pyramid scheme that raised $198 million, the Securities and Exchange commission says in a complaint filed Tuesday in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Some $57 million went to founder and CEO Ramil Ventura Palafox, his family, and associates, the SEC says.

“Palafox attracted investors with the allure of ...