Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Henry Owen
The FBI has announced a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Ruja Ignatova, the founder of the infamous cryptocurrency scheme, OneCoin. Ignatova allegedly defrauded investors of more than $4 billion in 2017 before disappearing without a trace.
OneCoin, founded by Ignatova in 2014, was promoted as a revolutionary cryptocurrency. Investigations later revealed that it lacked a real blockchain and operated as a Ponzi and multi-level marketing scheme. Millions of investors across over 175 countries were affected, with authorities confirming massive financial losses.
Financial regulators in Germany, Sweden, Latvia, and Italy had issued warnings about OneCoin between 2015 and 2016, identifying it as a pyramid scheme. In October 2017, Ignatova was charged in the U.S. with wire fraud, securities fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy. Shortly after, on October 25, she boarded a flight from Sofia, Bulgaria to Athens, Greece, and vanished, sparking one of the most extensive international manhunts in recent financial crime history.
A superseding indictment in February 2018 added further conspiracy charges. Several of Ignatova’s associates, including her brother Konstantin Ignatov and co-founder Sebastian Greenwood, have been arrested and convicted in the U.S., while a U.S. lawyer was convicted of laundering $400 million linked to the scheme. In 2024, a London High Court ordered a global freeze on assets connected to Ignatova, including luxury properties.
Authorities have documented alleged ties between Ignatova and organized crime, including payments to a Bulgarian crime boss for protection. While there are disputed reports that she may have been killed in 2018, law enforcement continues to treat her as alive and at large. The FBI and Europol continue their pursuit, urging anyone with information about Ignatova’s whereabouts to come forward in the ongoing effort to bring one of the largest financial fraudsters in history to justice.
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