Australian authorities have frozen the assets of BitConnect promoter John Bigatton, as international investigations into the world’s biggest cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme continue.
As per request by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), the federal court also issued Bigatton with a travel ban, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.
Bigatton is named as a director and shareholder of BitConnect International Plc, incorporated in the United Kingdom. He is also listed as the only representative of BitConnect Australia.
The federal court also froze the assets of a company believed to be linked to Bigatton, JB’s Investment Management. His wife, who has been missing since March, is reportedly the sole director and shareholder of JB’s Investment Management.
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While Mrs Bigatton’s disappearance directly coincides with the commencement of investigations into BitConnect, police have made no suggestion her husband was involved.
For those unfamiliar, BitConnect was an investment scam powered by a cryptocurrency, launched in 2017.
Armed with a supposedly effective trading algorithm and aggressive affiliate marketing, the company guaranteed investors monthly returns of up to 40 percent, which would increase alongside the amount of tokens purchased.
At one point, BitConnect’s market cap swelled to over $2.6 billion. Not long after, the team suddenly closed the platform, causing the token price to crash from over $400 to under $20.
Despite related cases finally moving forward in the US, local media reports Bigatton is not listed in any court documents filed in North America thus far.
In August last year, BitConnect India chief Divyesh Darji was arrested at New Delhi airport in relation to his business with the dodgy cryptocurrency.
By October, almost 40 individuals had been named in court documents related to the BitConnect scam, including popular YouTube promoter Trevon James.
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