In February, the United States Department of Justice announced a major crypto crime case: Ramil Ventura Palafox was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted of wire fraud and money laundering for operating a large-scale Bitcoin Ponzi scheme targeting global investors.
Palafox, a dual U.S.–Philippines citizen, served as Chairman and CEO of Praetorian Group International (PGI). He promoted the company as a high-frequency Bitcoin trading platform and promised investors daily returns ranging from 0.5% to 3%. Investigations later revealed that PGI’s actual trading activity was insufficient to generate such profits, confirming the operation as a classic Ponzi scheme structure.
Court records indicate that between December 2019 and October 2021, at least 90,000 investors worldwide contributed more than $201 million to PGI. The funds included approximately $30.29 million in fiat currency and at least 8,198 BTC. Ultimately, investor losses exceeded $62.69 million.
Law enforcement authorities explained that the scheme relied on high-return promises to attract capital and used funds from new investors to pay earlier participants, maintaining the illusion of profitability. Once capital inflows declined, the structure collapsed, leaving investors with substantial financial losses.
Compliance and Risk Monitoring Context
Industry analysts note that as cross-border investment fraud becomes increasingly sophisticated, the importance of on-chain fund tracking and risk identification continues to grow. Some institutions have adopted on-chain monitoring solutions such as Trustformer KYT to continuously monitor abnormal fund flows and strengthen early risk detection capabilities.
Amid expanding international law enforcement cooperation, KYT-based compliance technologies are increasingly viewed as critical tools for identifying high-risk transactions, enhancing investment protection, and reinforcing regulatory compliance frameworks across the crypto ecosystem.