GainBitcoin scam: CBI raids 60 sites, seizes Rs 23.9 crore crypto assets

Following raids at 60 locations across the country, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has seized cryptocurrencies worth Rs 23.94 crore, along with other evidence, including virtual digital assets, in connection with the GainBitcoin scam.

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The agency also recovered multiple hardware crypto wallets, 121 documents, 34 laptops/hard disks, 12 mobile phones, and several email and instant messaging app dumps.

The seized documents and electronic devices are currently being analysed to uncover further details about the misappropriation of funds and potential international transactions linked to the scam, sources said.

The raids, conducted in major cities such as Delhi, Pune, Nanded, Kolhapur, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Mohali, Jhansi and Hubli, are part of the ongoing investigation into the GainBitcoin scam. The fraudulent scheme, launched in 2015 by Amit Bhardwaj (now deceased), Ajay Bhardwaj and others, promised investors a 10 per cent monthly return on bitcoin investments over 18 months.

Operating on a multi-level marketing model, the scheme lured investors with lucrative referral commissions. While initial payouts were made in bitcoin, the scheme collapsed in 2017 and payouts were switched to an in-house cryptocurrency, MCAP, which had significantly lower value, further defrauding investors.