The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has obtained a final judgment against four entities and two individuals over their roles in an alleged crypto investment fraud that used the fake trading platform NanoBit to target investors.
The judgment, entered by default by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York on June 16, permanently bars the defendants from violating federal securities laws and imposes more than $5 million in combined disgorgement, interest, and civil penalties.
According to the SEC, the scheme operated between September 2023 and June 2024. Fraudsters allegedly posed as financial professionals in WhatsApp groups, built relationships with investors, and encouraged them to invest through the purported NanoBit crypto trading platform.
Court filings alleged NanoBit falsely claimed that its affiliate, NanobitUS Securities, was registered with the SEC in an effort to gain investors’ trust. The platform also promoted fake initial coin offerings, promising substantial returns.
Authorities said no trading took place on the platform. Instead, more than $2 million was transferred to bank accounts in Hong Kong, while hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of investors’ crypto assets were allegedly misappropriated.
The case forms part of the SEC’s broader crackdown on relationship investment scams, often referred to as “pig butchering” schemes, in which fraudsters cultivate trust through social media and messaging apps before persuading victims to invest in fraudulent crypto platforms.
The agency has repeatedly urged investors to verify the registration status of investment firms and avoid relying solely on information shared through online groups.
