Washington State Department of Financial Institutions
Washington State Department of Financial Institutions
27/08/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 27/08/2024 20:42
Cryptocurrency Trading Platform BIB Appears to Have Engaged in Fraud
The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI), Securities Division has received a complaint that a purported digital asset trading platform called BIB, using the websites www.bibcoinltd.com and m.bibcoinltd.com, may have engaged in fraud.
Scam Details
The investor reported learning of BIB from individuals going by the names Austin Johnson (Johnson) and Cindy Turner (Turner), who were leading a cryptocurrency group chat on Viber and educating members about crypto forex trading. Johnson advised members to open accounts with BIB, then provided trading signals informing members when to make particular trades. The investor transferred 20,000 USDT (Tether) to a BIB account and over the next few weeks, saw the account appear to grow as he traded according to Johnson's trading signals. The investor then joined a group formed by Johnson called Rocket, which required a minimum deposit of 200,000 USDT. The investor transferred USDT to BIB through Crypto.com. Only the members who invested the minimum amount were able to receive Johnson's trading signals.
Over the next few months, the investor's account appeared to grow substantially. However, the investor was never able to retrieve the funds. Instead, when the investor requested a withdrawal, various fees were imposed, including large commissions, taxes and withdrawal fees, which BIB would not allow to be deducted from the account profits. When the investor paid the fees, and the withdrawal was apparently processed, BIB claimed the investor had provided the wrong wallet address for the disbursement of funds. BIB then imposed a four percent gas fee to recover the crypto. The investor paid approximately half the fee, while Turner promised to pay the other half. After the investor submitted the recovery fee, BIB claimed they did not receive the cryptocurrency, and that Turner took it. BIB asked for additional gas fees. The investor received requests for fees via email from The BIB Team, using an email address of [email protected]. The investor determined this was likely a scam and declined to pay further. Altogether, the investor transferred $512,100 in USDT to BIB, including fees, none of which was recovered. Wallet addresses to which the investor transferred USDT included 455B43283504Aa06149223e85A061E6F450b87F9, 85081d826226010cb52E7Ba5a51b158713C918ec, and 0876f04bD0669a7a9ef123E3e5A9069eaE0a9bEd.
Further research revealed a website, www.bibvip.com/en_US, for self-described cryptocurrency exchange BIB Exchange, as well as social media accounts for BIB Exchange and BIB Exchange Global, which use a logo similar to or the same as that found on the www.bibcoinltd.com and m.bibcoinltd.com websites. Additionally, the investor was provided an email address for BIB at [email protected]. An exchange search site identified BIB Exchange as an 'Untracked Listing' and had no record of BIB Exchange Global. DFI has not confirmed whether these entities are related.
Despite multiple attempts to withdraw funds, the investor has been unable to recover the investment or purported gains. These allegations have not been verified by DFI.
This appears to be what is commonly called "Advanced Fee Fraud", which can take many forms. Learn more about advance fee fraud.
This also appears to be what is commonly called an "Asset Recovery Scam," which is a scam by a third party requiring a fee to purportedly recover lost funds in a prior fraudulent transaction. Learn more about refund and recovery scams.
Preventing Fraud
DFI urges consumers to exercise extreme caution before responding to any solicitation offering investment or financial services. Investment professionals need to be licensed with DFI to offer investments to Washington residents. In addition, most investment products sold need to be registered with DFI.
To check the licensing status and to find out if there are any complaints against an investment professional or investment product, please visit FINRA Brokercheck or contact the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions, Securities Division at (360) 902-8760. If you live outside of Washington State, contact your state securities regulator.
Reporting Fraud
If a consumer believes a person or company has violated state law or acted improperly regarding an investment product or service, they may file a complaint with the Securities Division.
Additional Resources
Protecting Yourself from Financial Fraud
Virtual Currency, Cryptocurrency, and Digital Assets Information for Consumers