OneCoin Hack

TOTAL LOST $4.0M
Medium Rugpull

What happened

OneCoin was a Ponzi scheme that pulled in $4 billion from 2014 to 2016. OneCoin was not actively traded, nor could the coins be used to purchase anything. Its founder, Ruja Ignatova, has disappeared, and co-founder Sebastian Greenwood is in jail in the U.S.

The company’s main business was selling course materials, which turned out to be plagiarized in most cases. Its course material business model was akin to a multi-level marketing (MLM) scheme, where course material buyers were paid to recruit new buyers.

Case & protocol details

Classification CeFi
Protocol Type Exit Scam/Rugpull
Affected asset / contract OneCoin

Evidence & learning

Sources and on-chain records

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