United States
Caproasia.com | The leading source of data, research, information & resource for financial professionals, investment managers, professional investors, family offices & advisors to institutions, billionaires, UHNWs & HNWs. Covering capital markets, investments and private wealth in Asia. How do you invest $3 million to $300 million? How do you manage $20 million to $3 billion of assets? Caproasia - Learn more



2024 / 2025 Summits in Hong Kong & Singapore
Institutional Investor Summit / Roundtable - March / Oct / Nov
Investment / Alternatives Summit - March / Oct / Nov
Investment Day - March / July / Sept / Oct / Nov
Private Wealth Summit - April / Oct / Nov
Family Office Summit - April / Oct / Nov
View Events | Register


This site is for accredited investors, professional investors, investment managers and financial professionals only. You should have assets around $3 million to $300 million or managing $20 million to $30 billion.











United States SEC Charged 11 Individuals & Forsage for Crypto Pyramid & Ponzi Scheme, Raised $300 Million from Millions of Investors Worldwide with Footprints in Russia, Philippines, Indonesia & Bali

4th August 2022 | Hong Kong

The United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged 11 individuals (Forsage.io) for operating an illegal Crypto Pyramid & Ponzi scheme, raising more than $300 million from millions of investors worldwide and footprints in Russia, Philippines, Indonesia & Bali.  United States SEC: ”Despite cease-and-desist actions against Forsage for operating as a fraud in September 2020 by the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines and in March 2021 by the Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance, the defendants allegedly continued to promote the scheme while denying the claims in several YouTube videos and by other means … … Those charged include the four founders of Forsage, who were last known to be living in Russia, the Republic of Georgia, and Indonesia (Bali), as well as three U.S.-based promoters engaged by the founders to endorse Forsage on its website and social media platforms, and several members of the so-called Crypto Crusaders—the largest promotional group for the scheme that operated in the United States from at least five different states.”  See full statement below.

“ United States SEC Charged 11 Individuals & Forsage for Crypto Pyramid & Ponzi Scheme, Raised $300 Million from Millions of Investors Worldwide with Footprints in Russia, Philippines, Indonesia & Bali “

 



- Article continues below -



Sign Up
Basic Member: $5 Monthly | $60 Yearly
Newsletter Daily 2 pm (Promo): $20 Monthly | $180 Yearly (FP: $680)


The 2024 Investment Day
17th Oct Hong Kong | 7th Nov Singapore

Private Equity, Hedge Funds, Boutique Funds, Private Markets & more. Join 20+ CIOs & Senior investment team, with > 60% single family offices with $300 million AUM. Taking place on 17th Oct 2024 in Hong Kong, 7th Nov 2024 in Singapore. Every March, July, Sept, Oct & Nov.
Visit | Register here


The 2024 Family Office Summit
17th Oct Hong Kong St Regis | 7th Nov Singapore Amara Sanctuary Resort

Join 80 single family offices & family office professionals in Hong Kong & Singapore
Links: 2024 Family Office Summit | Register here


2024/2025 Institutional Investor Summit / Roundtable
March / Oct / Nov in Hong Kong & Singapore

Join CEOs, CIOs, Senior investment team from Sovereign Wealth Funds, Pension Funds, Endowments, Foundations & Charities in Hong Kong, Singapore & Asia-Pacific at the 2024 Institutional Investor Summit / Roundtable.   Join as delegate, speaker, presenter, partner & sponsor.
Visit | Register here


2024/2025 Investment / Alternatives Summit
March / Oct / Nov in Hong Kong & Singapore

Join leading asset managers, hedge funds, boutique funds, private equity, venture capital & real estate firms in Hong Kong, Singapore & Asia-Pacific at the Investment / Alternatives Summit. Join as delegate, speaker, presenter, partner & sponsor.
Visit | Register here


2024/2025 Private Wealth Summit
April / Oct / Nov in Hong Kong & Singapore

Join CEOs, CIOs, Head of Private Banking, Head of Family Offices & Product Heads at The Private Wealth Summit.  Join as delegate, speaker, presenter, partner & sponsor.
Visit | Register here





SEC Charges Eleven Individuals in $300 Million Crypto Pyramid Scheme

United States

Alleged Fraudulent Blockchain Scheme Spanned Multiple Countries Including U.S., Russia

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged 11 individuals for their roles in creating and promoting Forsage, a fraudulent crypto pyramid and Ponzi scheme that raised more than $300 million from millions of retail investors worldwide, including in the United States. Those charged include the four founders of Forsage, who were last known to be living in Russia, the Republic of Georgia, and Indonesia, as well as three U.S.-based promoters engaged by the founders to endorse Forsage on its website and social media platforms, and several members of the so-called Crypto Crusaders—the largest promotional group for the scheme that operated in the United States from at least five different states.

According to the SEC’s complaint, in January 2020, Vladimir Okhotnikov, Jane Doe a/k/a Lola Ferrari, Mikhail Sergeev, and Sergey Maslakov launched Forsage.io, a website that allowed millions of retail investors to enter into transactions via smart contracts that operated on the Ethereum, Tron, and Binance blockchains. However, Forsage allegedly has operated as a pyramid scheme for more than two years, in which investors earned profits by recruiting others into the scheme.  Forsage also allegedly used assets from new investors to pay earlier investors in a typical Ponzi structure.

Despite cease-and-desist actions against Forsage for operating as a fraud in September 2020 by the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines and in March 2021 by the Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance, the defendants allegedly continued to promote the scheme while denying the claims in several YouTube videos and by other means.

“As the complaint alleges, Forsage is a fraudulent pyramid scheme launched on a massive scale and aggressively marketed to investors,” said Carolyn Welshhans, Acting Chief of the SEC’s Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit. “Fraudsters cannot circumvent the federal securities laws by focusing their schemes on smart contracts and blockchains.”

In addition to charging the four founders, the complaint, filed in United States District Court in the Northern District of Illinois, also charges Cheri Beth Bowen, of Pelahatchie, Miss., Ronald R. Deering, of Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho, Samuel D. Ellis, of Louisville, Ky., Mark F. Hamlin, of Henrico, Va., Carlos L. Martinez, of Chicago, Ill., Alisha R. Shepperd, of Dunedin, Fla., and Sarah L. Theissen, of Hartford, Wis., with violating the registration and anti-fraud provisions of the federal securities laws. The SEC’s complaint seeks injunctive relief, disgorgement, and civil penalties.

Without admitting or denying the allegations, two of the defendants, Ellis and Theissen, agreed to settle the charges and to be permanently enjoined from future violations of the charged provisions and certain other activity. Additionally, Ellis agreed to pay disgorgement and civil penalties, and Theissen will be required to pay disgorgement and civil penalties as determined by the court. Both settlements are subject to court approval.

The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Liz Canizares and Pamela Sawhney of the Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit and supervised by Amy Friedman and Ms. Welshhans. The litigation is being conducted by Patrick Costello, Christopher Carney, Ms. Canizares, and Ms. Sawhney and supervised by Olivia Choe. The Commission appreciates the assistance of the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines and the Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance.

Foreign Defendants                          Last known residence

Vladimir Okhotnikov                         Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia

Jane Doe a/k/a Lola Ferrari              Bali, Indonesia

Mikail Sergeev                                  Moscow, Russia

Sergey Maslakov                              Moscow, Russia




Managing $20 million to $3 billion. Investing $3 million to $300 million.
For Investment Managers, Hedge Funds, Boutique Funds, Private Equity, Venture Capital, Professional Investors, Family Offices, Private Bankers & Advisors, sign up today. Subscribe to Caproasia and receive the latest news, data, insights & reports, events & programs daily at 2 pm.

Join Events & Find Services
Join Investments, Private Wealth, Family Office events in Hong Kong, Singapore, Asia-wide. Find hard-to-find $3 million to $300 million financial & investment services at The Financial Centre | TFC. Find financial, investment, private wealth, family office, real estate, luxury investments, citizenship, law firms & more.  List hard-to-find financial & private wealth services.

Have a product launch? Promote a product or service? List your service at The Financial Centre | TFC. Join interviews & editorial and be featured on Caproasia.com or join Investments, Private Wealth, Family Office events. Contact us at [email protected] or [email protected]

Caproasia.com | The leading source of data, research, information & resource for financial professionals, investment managers, professional investors, family offices & advisors to institutions, billionaires, UHNWs & HNWs. Covering capital markets, investments and private wealth in Asia. How do you invest $3 million to $300 million? How do you manage $20 million to $3 billion of assets?



Quick Links


2021 Data Release
2020 List of Private Banks in Hong Kong
2020 List of Private Banks in Singapore
2020 Top 10 Largest Family Office
2020 Top 10 Largest Multi-Family Offices
2020 Report: Hong Kong Private Banks & Asset Mgmt - $4.49 Trillion
2020 Report: Singapore Asset Mgmt - $3.48 Trillion AUM


For Investors | Professionals | Executives
Latest data, reports, insights, news, events & programs
Everyday at 2 pm
Direct to your inbox
Save 2 to 8 hours per week. Organised for success

Register Below

For CEOs, Heads, Senior Management, Market Heads, Desk Heads, Financial Professionals, Investment Managers, Asset Managers, Fund Managers, Hedge Funds, Boutique Funds, Analysts, Advisors, Wealth Managers, Private Bankers, Family Offices, Investment Bankers, Private Equity, Institutional Investors, Professional Investors

Get Ahead in 60 Seconds. Join 10,000 +
Save 2 to 8 hours weekly. Organised for Success.

Sign Up / Register


    Investment ProfessionalAdvisorProfessional InvestorFinancial ProfessionalManagementOthers


    $20 million to $100 million AUM$100 million to $300 million AUM$300 million to $1 billion AUM$1 billion to $10 billion AUM$10 billion to $100 billion AUMMore than $100 billion AUM


    Mailing List / Free TrialMonthly SubscriptionYearly SubscriptionMembershipEvents


    2024 Investment Day Hong Kong 17th Oct2024 Investment Day Singapore 7th Nov2024 Family Office Summit Hong Kong 17th Oct2024 Family Office Summit Singapore 7th Nov2025 Events












    Web links may be disabled on mobile for security.
    Please click on desktop.










    Caproasia Users

    • Manage $20 million to $3 billion of assets
    • Invest $3 million to $300 million
    • Advise institutions, billionaires, UHNWs & HNWs

    Caproasia Platforms | 11,000 Investors & Advisors

    Monthly Roundtable & Networking

    Family Office Programs

    The 2024 Investment Day

    • March 2024 - Hong Kong
    • March 2024 - Singapore
    • July 2024 - Hong Kong
    • July 2024 - Singapore
    • Sept 2024 - Hong Kong
    • Sept 2024 - Singapore
    • Oct 2024 - Hong Kong
    • Nov 2024 - Singapore
    • Visit: The Investment Day | Register: Click here

    Caproasia Summits

    Contact Us

    For Enquiries, Membership
    [email protected], [email protected]

    For Listing, Subscription
    [email protected], [email protected]

    For Press Release, send to:
    [email protected]

    For Events & Webinars
    [email protected]

    For Media Kit, Advertising, Sponsorships, Partnerships
    [email protected]

    For Research, Data, Surveys, Reports
    [email protected]

    For General Enquiries
    [email protected]





    Caproasia | Driving the future of Asia
    a financial information technology co.
    since 2014