The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has filed charges against three crypto trading platforms and four investment clubs for allegedly operating an online scam that defrauded U.S. investors of more than $14 million.
In a complaint lodged in federal court in Colorado, the SEC said the scheme ran from January 2024 to January 2025 and relied on social media advertising and messaging apps to lure victims. The defendants include Morocoin Tech Corp., Berge Blockchain Technology Co., Ltd., Cirkor Inc., and the investment clubs AI Wealth Inc., Lane Wealth Inc., AI Investment Education Foundation Ltd., and Zenith Asset Tech Foundation.
According to the SEC, the operation used targeted ads to invite users into so-called investment clubs hosted mainly on WhatsApp. Once inside these group chats, fraudsters posing as financial experts shared what were presented as AI-driven trading tips to create the appearance of reliable profits and build trust.
The clubs then directed members to open accounts on Morocoin, Berge, and Cirkor, platforms that the SEC alleges were entirely fictitious. The regulator said the sites falsely claimed to offer government-licensed crypto trading services, but no real trading ever took place.
The complaint further alleges that the scheme expanded through the promotion of fake security token offerings tied to non-existent companies. When investors tried to withdraw their money, they were told to pay additional fees, deepening their losses.
The SEC said at least $14 million was misappropriated and routed overseas through a web of bank accounts and crypto wallets.
Alongside the enforcement action, the agency issued an investor alert warning that scammers increasingly use social media and group chats to run confidence schemes.
The SEC urged investors to independently verify anyone offering investment opportunities and to be cautious of unsolicited advice received in private messaging groups.
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May 15, 2026 15:25 ET Apart from the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as the next Fed chair, the main news on the economics front this week included key price data from the U.S. and the first quarter economic growth figures from major economies. Both consumer prices and producer costs have started to reflect the effect of supply shocks due to the Middle East conflict. In Europe, GDP data was in focus, while inflation data from China dominated the news flow in Asia.