This Tuesday morning (28), the Federal Police launched Operation Ouranós, with the aim of dismantling a criminal organization specialized in a financial pyramid scheme involving cryptocurrencies.
According to the PF, it offered a so-called cryptocurrency arbitrage, with promises of fixed and variable rewards, without any control, registration or permission from the competent authorities.
The group operated through financial institutions and capital market agents, all of which operated without the necessary authorization from the Central Bank of Brazil and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
28 search and seizure warrants
As part of the operation, 28 search and seizure warrants and 11 precautionary measures were issued, including two requiring electronic monitoring via an ankle bracelet, affecting 12 individuals and more than 50 businesses.
The court also ordered the freezing and seizure of assets worth approximately R$400 million, including 473 properties, 10 ships, an aircraft, 40 luxury vehicles, more than 111 bank accounts and three investment funds.
This elaborate scheme involved operating a securities distribution company (DTVM) to raise funds worth more than R$1 billion from approximately 7,000 investors spread across 17 Brazilian states as well as abroad.
The financing took place through public offerings of collective investment contracts (CIC), which were ostensibly applied in cryptocurrency arbitrage.
The investigation revealed that the collected funds were distributed through various company accounts, in a process of asset protection, with the aim of draining the assets of the clandestine financial institution.
This tracking of illicit funds exposed the practice of ‘money centrifugation’, a system where bank transfers are split into different levels and accounts.
Furthermore, the investigation has shown links between investments and possible origins in illegal activities, including drug trafficking, crimes against the national financial system and corporate and tax fraud.
The investigation, which began in 2020, found that the illegal actions started in Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina, and later expanded to Curitiba, Paraná, reaching São Paulo, the economic center of the country.
The crimes investigated include money laundering, the formation of a criminal organization and crimes against the national financial system, such as operating a financial institution without legal authorization, illegally offering securities and illegally providing investment advice.
Source: Live Coins
Barry Siefert is an accomplished journalist and author at The Nation View. He is known for his expertise in the field of cryptocurrency, and has written extensively on the topic. With a background in finance and economics, Barry has a deep understanding of the underlying technology and market forces that drive the crypto industry.
