Articles

Blockchain firm Chainalysis sued by bankrupt crypto lender Celsius over ‘sham audit confirming $3.3B AUM’

March 23, 2025

Blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis is being sued by the litigation administrators of bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network's entities in England and the United States for allegedly assisting "one of the biggest cons in cryptocurrency" by "falsely claiming" in 2020 it had conducted an audit that confirmed Celsius had $3.3 billion in assets under management.

Gibraltar accountant Karel Manasco facing custodial sentence for contempt of court

March 14, 2025

Gibraltar accountant Karel Manasco is facing a "custodial sentence" after being found in contempt of court for breaching an asset freeze order and lying in a witness statement in legal proceedings brought by his former employer, online gaming operator Mansion Group.

Russian billionaire’s daughter seeks evidence in U.S. for actions against ‘corrupt Antigua Gov’t’ regarding sale of ‘$120M yacht for $40M’

March 11, 2025

Citing "corruption and self-dealing within the Antiguan government", the daughter of Russian billionaire Andrey Guryev is seeking evidence in the United States for use in legal proceedings in Antigua and Barbuda, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates regarding the seizure and sale of a Cayman Islands-registered 266-foot motor yacht for '$80 million below market value'.

Deltec Bank sues digital platform provider Ibanera & its CEO, Michael Carbonara, for ‘$18M theft’

March 4, 2025

Bahamas-based Deltec Bank & Trust Ltd. has sued the Wyoming and Singapore operations of digital banking platform Ibanera and its CEO, Michael Carbonara, at federal court in Florida for allegedly stealing $18 million.

Swiss-Canadian fund manager Marc-André Pepin under criminal investigation again in Switzerland after already being convicted of forgery

February 27, 2025

Canadian-Swiss asset manager Marc-André Pépin was criminally convicted in Switzerland in 2023 for falsifying the financial statements of his failed Cayman Islands-domiciled SPI Investment Fund and is under criminal investigation again in the same country after three of the Fund's investors who invested approximately $7 million filed complaints for suspected fraud, OffshoreAlert can reveal.

Russian billionaire Andrey Guriev seeks to hold litigation funders liable for £12M costs award in failed English lawsuit by Alexander Gorbachev

February 26, 2025

Russian billionaire businessman Andrey Guriev has applied to take discovery from Miami-based investment firm 777 Partners LLC and co-founder Joshua Wander at federal court in Florida in an attempt to make litigation funders in the British Virgin Islands, Isle of Man, Jersey, Netherlands, United Arab Emirates, and United States pay some or all of a £12 million legal costs award in England for funding a "frivolous" lawsuit brought by a former friend, Alexander Gorbachev. Guriev is also contemplating filing an action of his own "for wrongful and malicious prosecution".

Petition to wind up Argentina-based oil & gas firm San Antonio Internacional filed in Bermuda by Cayman Islands private equity fund GP Capital Partners IV

February 24, 2025

Cayman Islands-domiciled private equity fund GP Capital Partners IV, LP has filed a petition at Bermuda Supreme Court to wind up Argentina-based, Bermuda-domiciled oil and gas exploration and drilling company San Antonio Internacional Ltd., whose directors are Brazilians Fersen Lambranho and Antonio Bonchristiano.

Cayman court asked to supervise liquidation of AXIA crypto group amid ‘$41M fraud’ allegations

February 21, 2025

In anticipation of "legal challenges" from creditors, the Voluntary Liquidators of two Cayman Islands entities that are part of the AXIA Group which raised $41 million from investors for a crypto project that collapsed following regulatory action in Canada and a securities fraud complaint in the United States have asked a Cayman court to supervise the liquidation.

Cayman funds seek to quash Morgan Stanley summonses for ‘Canadian tax investigation into Senvest Capital’

February 20, 2025

Two Cayman Islands hedge funds - Senvest Master Fund, L.P. and Senvest Technology Partners Master Fund, L.P. - have applied to a federal court in New York to quash IRS summonses that were issued to Morgan Stanley apparently in support of an investigation by Canada Revenue Agency into the tax liabilities of Toronto Stock Exchange-listed Senvest Capital Inc., senior officer and major shareholder Richard Mashaal, and an affiliate, Jefferson Northern, Inc.

Bahamas-based Deltec Bank and Trust & U.S. Gov’t fight for ownership of $13.5M ‘crypto fraud proceeds’

February 18, 2025

Bahamas-based Deltec Bank and Trust is attempting to stop the U.S. Government from taking ownership of $13.5 million that was seized from Deltec Bank's U.S. correspondent account 18 months ago because it was allegedly traceable to crypto fraud and laundering.

Bankrupt British fund manager Greg Bryce sentenced to 15 months in prison for contempt of court (but refuses to return from Dubai)

February 17, 2025

Bankrupt British fund manager Greg Bryce has been sentenced to 15 months in prison in England for breaching a €3 million asset freeze order - a sentence he has not started serving because he refuses to travel to England from Dubai, where he is now based.

Winding Up Petition filed against another Cayman Islands mutual fund operated by Briton Jeremy Leach

February 16, 2025

A winding up petition has been filed against another Cayman Islands mutual fund - Vita Nova Hedge Fund - operated by British fund manager Jeremy Leach, who is a serial operator of failed investment schemes that are littered with red flags.

Dubai-based U.K. national Richard Fagan ordered to pay £62M by Gibraltar judge for Kijani Commodity Fund fraud

February 13, 2025

Dubai-based, British national Richard Fagan has been ordered to pay £62 million by a Gibraltar court for swindling investors in Kijani Commodity Fund, a Mauritius and then Cayman Islands-domiciled fund that raised $123 million from pension funds and private investors before collapsing after being exposed by OffshoreAlert in 2015.

Kobre & Kim law firm sues English barrister and former partner Nick Cherryman over ‘£140K outstanding loan’

February 7, 2025

Kobre & Kim is suing one of its former partners - English barrister Nick Cherryman - for alleged failure to repay a £140,000 loan after leaving the law firm.

Counsel for suspected $5.5M+ crypto embezzler Thomas Braziel accused of frustrating investigation into ‘diverted funds’

January 31, 2025

Counsel for distressed crypto investor Thomas Braziel - New York law firm Amini LLC and one of its attorneys, Jeffrey Chubak - have allegedly failed to respond to subpoenas from the new Receiver of Fund.com, Inc., who is trying to find out what happened to millions of dollars Braziel is suspected of embezzling from the firm while serving as its Receiver from 2016 until he was removed by a Delaware Chancery Court judge in 2024.

Richard Kim ‘misappropriated majority of assets’ from Cayman crypto start-up Zero Edge Corp. that raised $8.3M, say liquidators

January 30, 2025

Cayman Islands online crypto casino start-up Zero Edge Corp. raised $8.3 million from investors and the sale of tokens and then quickly collapsed after one of its founders - U.S. national Richard Kim - allegedly misappropriated most of its assets and disappeared, the company's liquidators claimed in a court filing.

Cayman law firm Travers Thorp Alberga sues investment bankers & lawyer over ‘XIO’s $522K unpaid legal fees’

January 28, 2025

Three investment bankers in China, Hong Kong, and England - Murphy Qiao, Joseph Pacini, and Carsten Geyer - and a lawyer in Germany - Gero van Pelchrzim - are being sued by Cayman Islands law firm Travers Thorp Alberga regarding allegedly outstanding legal fees and expenses of $522,000 incurred by London-based alternative investment group XIO.

Singapore investor applies to wind up Singaporean David Sin’s Cayman firm SIN Capital over ‘$4.6M debt’

January 28, 2025

Singapore investor TH Investments has applied to wind up Singaporean accused fraudster David Sin's SIN Capital in the Cayman Islands regarding an alleged debt of $4.6 million.

Luxembourg’s Polaris Financial Investments touts ‘success’ of Cayman ‘ancestor’ fund SPI (even though it failed amid allegations of fraud and ‘$118M+ missing’)

January 26, 2025

Insolvent Cayman Islands fund SPI, which collapsed in 2023 amid allegations of fraud and its liquidators claiming over $118 million has "disappeared", is being held out as a success in promotional material for a successor Luxembourg scheme operated by two of its former principals, Swiss asset manager Marc-André Pepin and British fund director Gareth Williams, via their Luxembourg firm Polaris Financial Investments.

Bermuda regulator applies to wind up Martin Pitoňák’s Stonebridge Capital Hedge Fund

January 21, 2025

Bermuda's financial regulator has applied to wind up Stonebridge Capital Hedge Fund Limited, which is operated by Slovakian Martin Pitoňák.

Carey Olsen sues Three Arrows Capital crypto fund founders Su Zhu & Kyle Davies for ‘unpaid legal fees’

January 19, 2025

British Virgin Islands law firm Carey Olsen has sued the principals of failed crypto fund Three Arrows Capital - Su Zhu and Kyle Davies - for "outstanding professional fees and disbursements" of $348,605.

Fund manager Jacob Weinig suspected of ‘wrongdoing’ by investors in his Bahamas/Cayman/U.S.-based Iceberg Capital crypto group

January 12, 2025

U.S. feeder funds for two Cayman Islands master funds that invest in crypto and are managed by New York-based investment manager Jacob Weinig via his Bahamas-based Iceberg Capital Group are being sued by investors who want to inspect the funds' books because they suspect wrongdoing.

SEC sues Bermuda’s Equity Acquisition Company & German principal Carsten Klein for ‘$3.4M in outstanding regulatory penalties’

January 8, 2025

Bermuda-based investment firm Equity Acquisition Company Ltd. and its Florida-based German principal Carsten Klein are being sued by a U.S. regulator for alleged failure to pay $3.9 million in penalties that were imposed nearly two years ago.

Caribbean’s Loyal Bank settles FATCA-related money laundering charge in U.S., agrees to pay $2M fine

December 30, 2024

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines-based Loyal Bank has entered into a Deferred Prosecution Agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice to settle a criminal charge of conspiring to launder the proceeds of fraud involving failure to comply with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.

Binance sues bankrupt crypto broker Voyager Digital for return of $10M deposit after failed asset purchase deal

December 27, 2024

Crypto exchange Binance.US is suing bankrupt crypto broker Voyager Digital for the return of a $10 million deposit it paid under an unconsummated deal to purchase "all or substantially all cryptocurrency on the Voyager platform", move it to Binance, and return it to customers so they could continue trading.

U.S. courts authorize IRS to issue ‘John Doe’ summonses to identify Trident Trust Group clients suspected of U.S. tax evasion

December 24, 2024

United States federal courts in New York and South Dakota have entered orders authorizing the IRS to serve 'John Doe' summonses on 14 entities in an attempt to identify clients of corporate services provider Trident Trust Group who are suspected of evading U.S. taxes, while a third court in Georgia has yet to rule on a similar petition.

1MDB liquidators file second BVI lawsuit against Amicorp & CEO Toine Knipping, seek $1B+ for ‘knowing participation in fraud’

December 23, 2024

The liquidators of former Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB have filed a second lawsuit in the British Virgin Islands against Hong Kong-based corporate services provider Amicorp Group and its Dubai-based CEO, Toine Knipping, this one seeking damages in excess of $1 billion for alleged "knowing participation" in a multi-billion dollar fraud. Amicorp issued a statement that it "strongly denies the allegations".

British investor Chris Tuohy seeks evidence in U.S. for use in English lawsuit against Akhil Tripathi

December 23, 2024

British investor Chris Tuohy is seeking evidence from three banks in New York for use in a lawsuit in England against 39-year-old British businessman Akhil Tripathi regarding alleging breach of duty concerning the operation of financially-troubled snoring-products firm Signifier Medical Technologies.

IRS files ‘John Doe summons’ petitions to identify Trident Trust Group clients suspected of U.S. tax evasion

December 17, 2024

In an attempt to identify clients of international corporate services provider Trident Trust Group who are suspected of evading U.S. taxes, the IRS has applied to federal courts in New York, Georgia, and South Dakota for permission to serve 'John Doe Summonses' on courier services, financial institutions, correspondent banks, and Trident Trust Group itself.

Dubai-based BVI investment firms ‘All Blue’ seek Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in U.S. amid investigation into ‘$126M naked short trade losses’

December 16, 2024

The liquidators of Dubai-based, British Virgin Islands-domiciled All Blue Investments North Star 1 Ltd. and All Blue Investment Management Ltd. have filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in Miami amid an investigation into losses of $126 million from "improper naked short trades" and the suspected shifting of trading profits to two Cayman Islands affiliates, Red Rowan Investments Ltd. and Washington Muse Investments SPC.

U.K.’s Man Group seeks evidence in U.S. to defend ‘$1B investment loss’ lawsuit by Kuwait’s state pension fund

December 12, 2024

British and Swiss investment firms that are part of the London-based Man Group have applied to take discovery in New York to aid its defense of a civil lawsuit against them in England by Kuwait's state pension fund, the Public Institution for Social Security, which is seeking nearly $1 billion in damages.

Bankrupt British fund manager Greg Bryce held in contempt of court for ‘breaching asset freeze order’

November 29, 2024

Bankrupt British fund manager Greg Bryce, whose London-based investment firm Pardus Wealth Limited was forced into liquidation earlier this year by a Latvian creditor, has been held in contempt of court in England for breaching an asset freeze order.

Bahamas firm seeks to enforce €5M arbitration award against Miami-based 777 Partners

November 28, 2024

Miami-based investment group 777 Partners is being sued again, this time by a Bahamas investment firm - Heritage Travel and Tourism Ltd. - that is seeking to enforce a €5 million partial arbitration award regarding 777's uncompleted purchase of a minority stake in Dutch luxury fashion holding company La Perla Fashion Holding N.V. for €60 million.

Cayman Islands capital-raising subsidiaries of Spirit Airlines follow parent into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S.

November 26, 2024

Four Cayman Islands subsidiaries of Florida-based, self-described "ultra low-cost carrier" Spirit Airlines have followed its parent into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in New York, namely Spirit Finance Cayman 1 Ltd., Spirit Finance Cayman 2 Ltd., Cayman IP Spirit Ltd., and Spirit Loyalty Cayman Ltd.

British-American fund manager Nicholas Hofgren loses legal battle with Guernsey regulator to set aside 14-year corporate ban

November 21, 2024

London-based, British-American fund manager Nicholas Hofgren, 54, has lost a two-year legal battle to stop the Guernsey Financial Services Commission imposing regulatory sanctions against him for "misconduct" regarding his operation of an investment scheme known as GFG Funds.

Cayman/Hong Kong crypto firm BIT Mining admits bribing Japanese officials, will pay $10M to settle U.S. criminal charges

November 19, 2024

Cayman Islands-domiciled, Hong Kong-based crypto firm BIT Mining Ltd. has agreed to pay a $10 million fine to settle criminal charges in the United States that it paid $1.9 million in bribes to "Japanese government officials", while its Chinese former CEO, Zhengming Pan, has been criminally indicted.

Brazil’s Unigel petrochemical group files for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in U.S.

November 16, 2024

Citing liabilities of BRL $4.1 billion, one of Brazil's largest petrochemical companies - Unigel - has filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in New York.

British fund manager Jeremy Leach defaults on $11.5M fraud complaint settlement, say Cayman liquidators

November 14, 2024

British fund manager Jeremy Leach has defaulted on an agreement to pay $11.5 million to settle a fraud complaint in the Cayman Islands regarding two of his failed life settlement funds - Traded Life Policies Fund and Diversified Settlements Fund, the liquidators have told creditors.

U.S. files forfeiture complaint against crypto linked to ‘Sam Bankman-Fried’s Chinese bribery scheme’

November 12, 2024

The United States has filed a forfeiture complaint regarding crypto allegedly traceable to a bribery scheme by FTX principal Sam Bankman-Fried to unfreeze $1 billion of crypto that had been frozen by Chinese law enforcement in 2021.

FTX sues crypto exchange Binance to clawback $1.8B in ‘fraudulent transfers’

November 11, 2024

FTX - which "may have been insolvent from inception" - has sued rival crypto exchange Binance in an attempt to recover $1.76 billion of "fraudulent transfers" in a dispute whose parties are entities or individuals in Antigua, Bahamas, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, China, Hong Kong, Ireland, and USA.

With liabilities of $580M, Bermuda AI firm Afinity files for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in U.S.

November 4, 2024

Artificial intelligence firm Afiniti, Ltd. - which went into provisional liquidation in Bermuda on September 19th and has liabilities of $580 million - has filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in the United States.

U.S. investor sues Spanish ‘freedom fighter’ Luis Cuende over ‘$25M Aragon crypto scheme theft’

October 31, 2024

Alleging "a blatant act of theft", a U.S. investor is suing 24-year-old Spanish self-described "freedom fighter" Luis Cuende and three Swiss entities in New York regarding a crypto venture known as Aragon that raised "$25 million in Ether" via an Initial Coin Offering.

Insolvent Canadian financial services group Chesswood files for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in U.S., owes lenders over $130M

October 30, 2024

Canadian financial services group Chesswood, which "provides loans to small businesses and consumers across Canada and the United States", has filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in the United States, owing "existing lenders" US$66 million and C$93 million.

Hong Kong-based French businessman Damien Dernoncourt sues Credit Suisse for ‘spying on me during CEO’s affair with my wife’

October 29, 2024

Hong Kong-based French businessman Damien Dernoncourt is suing Swiss bank Credit Suisse for $15 million in the United States for allegedly hacking into his emails and spying on him at the direction of the bank's then-CEO, Tidjane Thiam, who was allegedly having an affair with Dernoncourt's then-wife, fellow banker Marie-Soazic Geffroy.

Cayman’s SPI Investment Fund liquidators seek evidence from U.S. loan recipients for investigation into ‘disappearance of $118M’

October 28, 2024

The liquidators of three insolvent Cayman Islands investment funds who are investigating "the disappearance of monies" from SPI Investment Fund SPC have applied for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in Florida so they can take discovery from representatives of alleged $118 million loan recipients Sinai Holdings and Prudent Group, including Dennis Klemming, Jacob Gitman, and Yulia Kislyuk.

MMA’s Professional Fighters League sues athletes’ social commerce platform MILLIONS for ‘$250K sponsorship breach’

October 28, 2024

Canadian firm MILLIONS, which operates a social commerce platform for athletes, is being sued for $250,000 for allegedly defaulting on a sponsorship agreement with U.S. mixed martial arts firm Professional Fighters League.

Singapore-based student housing investment manager Shangxuan Tan sued by Chinese-owned Cayman lender over ‘$34M loan’

October 28, 2024

Amid allegations of fraud, 35-year-old Singapore-based student housing investment manager Shangxuan Tan is being sued by a Cayman Islands firm and its Chinese principal, Yanglong Song, regarding an allegedly outstanding loan of $34 million, with the plaintiffs seeking the appointment of a Receiver for Tan's North Carolina-based Ivy Fund Manager.

Guernsey regulator bans Steve Dewsnip from financial services industry

October 27, 2024

British businessman Steve Dewsnip, 57, whose involvement in several fraudulent investment schemes has been previously exposed by OffshoreAlert, has been banned from Guernsey's regulated financial services industry "as a result of his failure to meet the minimum criteria for licensing".

Canadian EV vehicle supplier Vicinity Motor Corp. files for Chapter 15 recognition in U.S.

October 25, 2024

Three days after it went into receivership in Vancouver, Canadian publicly-listed electric vehicle supplier Vicinity Motor Corp. has filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy recognition in the United States.

Offshore businessmen Jean Chalopin & Gregory Pepin accuse Texas ‘fund manager’ of $4.1M fraud

October 22, 2024

Bahamas-based Deltec Bank's Chairman Jean Chalopin and its former Deputy CEO, Cayman Islands resident Gregory Pepin, have filed a lawsuit in the United States in which they claim to have been swindled out of a combined $4.1 million by purported fund manager Reno Casimir.