Indian Police Arrest Leaders of Major Bitcoin Mining Scam

India has proven to be a major region for bitcoin activity. Not all of the ventures in this country are completely legitimate, unfortunately. Two leaders of a notorious cryptocurrency scam were arrested earlier this week. Amit and Vivek Bhardwaj are the individuals responsible for creating some of the bitcoin MLM schemes active in India.

Ending bitcoin Scams in India

Even though the Indian government is still contemplating bitcoin regulation, cryptocurrency is booming in the region. Local exchanges note significant growth every quarter and it seems this trend will continue for some time. It has now become evident not everyone is buying bitcoin for “regular” purposes. A lot of Indians also invested in a network of bitcoin MLM scams which have plagued the country for quite some time now.

These particular scams are the brainchild of Amit and Vivek Bhardwaj. Both individuals have defrauded close to 8,000 local residents. Although the full damage remains unknown, reports indicate up to RS 2,000 crore may have been stolen from investors. Their arrest is the direct result of a lengthy investigation by the Pune city police.

A total of three companies were under investigation by the police. GB Minors, Gain bitcoin, and GB21 are all part of the same fraudulent scheme ring. It is not the first time people connected with these scams are arrested. In total, nearly a dozen individuals have been apprehended in the past few months. It is evident a lot of people were lured in by the promised high returns all of these companies offer.

Beware of MLM Programs

Similar to most scams, these bitcoin MLM programs offer high returns on investment. For the Bhardwaj brothers, promising 10% or more is not uncommon. These returns were expected to materialize over the course of 18 months. Given the volatile nature of all cryptocurrencies, guaranteed returns are simply unrealistic.

These MLM schemes eventually started facing a lot of backlash. Defrauded investors filed police reports in different cities and provinces. With a total of 25 complaints, the police had no choice but to further investigate the matter. Most users never saw any return on investment and eventually only lost money due to these scams.

For now, the investigation is still ongoing. Local police officials are convinced there are other promoters still active as of right now. A total of 32 bitcoin and 79.99 Ether has been recovered so far. A vast sum of cash is also seized, which is a positive sign. Returning the lost money to investors will be a different matter altogether.

Published at Fri, 06 Apr 2018 12:51:24 +0000

bitcoin

October 29, 2017

Big Investors are Making Big Money with Bitcoin

bitcoin’s base of supporters is growing and increasingly pouring money into the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Now, this base is attracting financial giants, who are becoming familiar with bitcoin’s value and perceiving its fantastic potential. As a result, they are seriously starting to invest in the cryptocurrency. For example, Bill Miller is successfully investing a third of his hedge fund’s capital in bitcoin.

Once a Successful Stock Market Investor, Now a Successful bitcoin Investor

Bill Miller

Influential investor Bill Miller managed a portfolio that beat the stock markets for the period 1991-2005. Now, he is also making lots of money with bitcoin.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, Miller has invested 30 percent of his fund’s assets in bitcoin. Notably, he bought bitcoin when it was $350 USD. As of this writing, bitcoin’s price is above $5,900 USD.

Among its $2.3 billion in assets is a $154 million hedge fund, MVP 1. The fund is up 72.5% so far this year, Mr. Miller said in an interview. It has about 30% of its assets in bitcoin, he said, up from about 5% in 2016.

Famed value-fund manager Bill Miller is bullish on bitcoinhttps://t.co/l7xXl5h8pE via @WSJ

— Jason Zweig (@jasonzweigwsj) October 27, 2017

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Miller expressed his optimistic views about bitcoin, saying:

I believe there is still a nontrivial chance bitcoin goes to zero, but each day it does not, that chance declines as more venture capital flows into the bitcoin ecosystem and more people become familiar with bitcoin and buy it.

Some Old-Time Investors Still Remain Unfamiliar With bitcoin

As more people become enlightened with the virtues that bitcoin offers, the number of cryptocurrency enthusiasts is growing exponentially. However, many big-time investors remain uneducated about the cryptocurrency. And fearing the unknown, they resist change and keep on being skeptical.

One notable example is the magnate Warren Buffett, who is ignoring the potential of bitcoin and remains unconvinced about bitcoin’s amazing qualities. Indeed, he is unable to appreciate bitcoin’s value. Hence, he mistrusts it.

Recently, addressing business school students, Buffett said, “You can’t value bitcoin because it’s not a value-producing asset.” Then, he referred to bitcoin’s spectacular upward trend as a “real bubble in that sort of thing,” MarketWatch reported.

It is not the first time that the Oracle of Omaha has failed to see the potential that innovation and new technologies can offer. In fact, one of the problems that has affected Buffett’s decision making has been his unfamiliarity with and lack of interest in technology.

For example, Buffett previously failed to appreciate the potential of technology and social media stocks, such as Google and Facebook. Now, Buffett recognizes that excluding technology stocks in the Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio has been one of his worst mistakes.

While discussing his failure to buy Google, at the time Google’s founders approached him to participate in the IPO, he admitted failing to act due to his ignorance. In this connection, Buffett said:

And so I had plenty of ways to ask questions or anything of the sort and educate myself, but I blew it.

Buffett also explained missing the opportunity to buy Amazon, by saying that he had been “too dumb.”

More Familiarity with bitcoin will Change Negative Perceptions

Warren Buffett

Granted, there are financial tycoons of the caliber of Warren Buffett and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal who will resist change and technological innovation. However, many other big names in finance and industry are becoming cryptocurrency enthusiasts. For example, Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, is excited about bitcoin. In 2014, Gates declared, “bitcoin is better currency.”

Likewise, Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, is excited, believing that bitcoin is better than gold and the mighty US dollar.

Perception about the cryptocurrency is rapidly evolving, as reflected by bitcoin’s soaring value in the financial markets. And, as education in cryptocurrency reaches multi-billionaires and their inner circles, their resistance to bitcoin will decrease. Consequently, many of them, such as Bill Miller, will start to see and profit from bitcoin’s amazing potential.

What do you think will be the impact when the world’s wealthiest people become more educated about bitcoin? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Wikimedia Commons, and Miller Value Partners

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