The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched a claims process for victims of the OneCoin cryptocurrency scheme, giving fraud victims access to more than $40 million in forfeited assets.
Eligible claimants must submit remission petitions by June 30 through Kroll, the court-appointed administrator managing the restitution program, the DOJ said.
Who can file and how it works
The compensation program covers losses linked to OneCoin, which raised more than $4 billion worldwide between 2014 and 2019. The $40 million pool consists of assets seized in criminal cases brought in the Southern District of New York.
People who purchased OneCoin tokens during that period can file petitions through Kroll. The DOJ said details, eligibility criteria, and petition forms are available on the program’s website maintained by Kroll.
While the claims process offers a route to partial recovery, the size of the fund is small compared with the estimated $4 billion taken in by the scheme, signaling that full restitution is unlikely.
Key figures and ongoing prosecutions
OneCoin’s public face, co‑founder Ruja Ignatova, remains at large. She was added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list in 2022. Federal authorities are offering up to $250,000 for information leading to her arrest, and the U.S. State Department has posted a separate reward of up to $5 million.
Prosecutors have already secured several convictions tied to the operation:
- Swedish co‑founder Karl Sebastian Greenwood pleaded guilty in December 2022 to wire fraud and money laundering. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to pay a $300 million penalty.
- Former head of legal and compliance, Irina Dilkinska, was sentenced in April 2024 to four years in prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy. She was ordered to forfeit $111.44 million.
- A Munich-based attorney, charged in October 2022, was accused of transferring €20 million (about $23.6 million) on Ignatova’s behalf for overseas real estate, while helping to move another €320 million in payments allegedly tied to fraud and money laundering.
The most recent case involves William Morro, who prosecutors say helped move OneCoin-related funds through international accounts. Authorities allege he transferred $35 million to an account in Hong Kong and $6 million to an account in the U.S. He was arrested on April 23, 2024, and charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
These actions form part of what the DOJ has presented as a long-running push to dismantle the financial infrastructure behind OneCoin and to hold both core operators and facilitators accountable.
Wider crackdown on crypto fraud
The OneCoin restitution program comes against a backdrop of rising losses from digital asset scams. According to data from the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, reported U.S. losses from cryptocurrency investment fraud reached $3.94 billion in 2023.
Authorities have signaled that they are intensifying scrutiny of digital asset flows, complex offshore structures, and intermediaries who move or conceal illicit proceeds. Enforcement agencies are focusing on the operational and legal integrity of crypto-related projects and on those who help route or disguise funds.
OneCoin, which billed itself as a revolutionary cryptocurrency but did not operate on a public blockchain, has become a high-profile example of how large‑scale fraud can be built around digital asset narratives.
Ongoing hunt for Ignatova
Despite a growing list of convictions, Ignatova remains missing. The multi-million dollar rewards attached to her capture highlight her status as a priority target for U.S. and international law enforcement.
Authorities continue to treat her as the central figure behind the scheme, while emphasizing that her continued evasion does not shield associates and enablers from significant prison terms, fines, and forfeitures.
Limited recovery for victims
For victims of OneCoin, the remission process offers an opportunity to reclaim at least part of their losses. Yet the gap between the $40 million available and the more than $4 billion raised by the scheme underscores a familiar outcome in large fraud cases: even aggressive enforcement and asset seizures rarely restore funds in full.
Traders and other market participants watching the case are likely to see it as another signal that cross-border digital asset operations, opaque payment channels, and anonymous structures face growing legal and regulatory pressure worldwide.
Curious how crypto crimes unfold? Learn key lessons from major hacks and failures in our crypto security breaches guide.
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