New Delhi, February 25 (HS): The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has conducted extensive raids at over 60 locations across the country as part of its investigation into the 'Gain Bitcoin' cryptocurrency scam.

According to the official statement, coordinated search operations are being conducted in Delhi-NCR, Pune, Chandigarh, Nanded, Kolhapur, Bengaluru and other major cities, targeting premises linked to the main accused persons, their associates and institutions suspected of laundering the proceeds of crime.

Gain Bitcoin was an alleged Ponzi scheme launched in 2015 by Amit Bhardwaj (deceased), Ajay Bhardwaj and their network of agents. The scheme operated through several websites such as www.gainbitcoin.com etc. under the facade of a company called Variabletech Private Limited.

The fraudulent scheme lured investors by promising lucrative 10 per cent monthly returns in bitcoin for up to 18 months. Investors were encouraged to buy bitcoin from exchanges and invest it with Gainbitcoin through cloud mining contracts. The model followed the multi-level marketing (MLM) structure, commonly associated with pyramid structured Ponzi schemes, where payouts depended on bringing in new investors.

Initially investors received payments in bitcoin. However, by 2017 the scheme began to collapse as the inflow of new investments dwindled. In an attempt to cover the losses, Gainbitcoin unilaterally converted the payments into its alleged in-house cryptocurrency called MCAP, which was worth significantly less than bitcoin, further misleading investors.

Several FIRs were filed across the country, alleging large-scale fraud and money laundering. Given the vast scale and complexity of the scam, the cases registered in various states including Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Chandigarh, Delhi, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra were transferred to the CBI by the Supreme Court of India.

The CBI took over these cases and conducted a comprehensive investigation to unravel the full extent of the fraud, identify all accused parties and trace the misappropriated funds including international transactions.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar