FBI：加密货币欺诈案件增加 45%，达到 56 亿美元

从埼玉县开始调查，但发现了一个狡猾的网络

The FBI has charged four cryptocurrency companies (Saitama, Robo Inu, VZZN and Lilian Finance) and four ‘market maker’ firms (Gotbit, ZM Quant, CLS Global and MyTradeMM) alleging they worked together to pump and dump a smorgasbord of shitcoins.

FBI 已指控四家加密货币公司（Saitama、Robo Inu、VZZN 和 Lilian Finance）和四家“做市商”公司（Gotbit、ZM Quant、CLS Global 和 MyTradeMM），指控他们共同拉高和抛售大量垃圾币。

Sounds kinda standard for the crypto market doesn’t it?

听起来有点像加密货币市场的标准，不是吗？

The twist is that one of these shitcoins, NexFundAI, was actually created by the FBI for the express purpose of catching these dodgy companies as they attempted to fraudulently pump the token’s price.

不同之处在于，其中一种垃圾币 NexFundAI 实际上是由 FBI 创建的，其明确目的是抓捕这些试图欺诈性抬高代币价格的狡猾公司。

The FBI’s investigation began after it received a tip off from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that the crypto company, Saitama, was engaging in market manipulation to increase the price of its token. The FBI’s investigation of Saitama led to the eventual launch of NexFundAI, which allowed the bureau to observe up close how these ‘market makers’ pumped the token at the expense of legitimate investors.

美国联邦调查局 (FBI) 收到美国证券交易委员会 (SEC) 的举报后开始调查，称加密货币公司 Saitama 正在操纵市场以提高其代币价格。 FBI 对埼玉县的调查最终导致了 NexFundAI 的推出，这使得该局能够近距离观察这些“做市商”如何以牺牲合法投资者的利益为代价来炒作代币。

In all, 18 individuals and organisations have been charged with fraud, including four large crypto firms, the leaders of the ‘market making’ firms and several employees of the ‘market making’ firms. So far, four of the alleged fraudsters have pleaded guilty and several wash trading bots — responsible for tens of millions of dollars worth of fraudulent trades in over 60 different cryptocurrencies — have been shut down.

总共有 18 名个人和组织被指控欺诈，其中包括四家大型加密货币公司、“做市”公司的领导人以及“做市”公司的几名员工。到目前为止，四名涉嫌欺诈者已认罪，数个洗钱交易机器人（负责 60 多种不同加密货币价值数千万美元的欺诈交易）已被关闭。

The FBI received information from the SEC suggesting that Saitama, which at one time had a market cap of over US$7 billion, was engaging in market manipulation to pump the price of its token.

FBI 从 SEC 收到的信息表明，一度市值超过 70 亿美元的 Saitama 正在参与市场操纵，以抬高其代币的价格。

During the course of its Saitama investigation, the FBI identified that Robo Inu, VZZN and Lillian Finance were all also committing fraud and other crimes as they attempted to pump their token prices. All of these companies, other than Lillian Finance, are closely linked to former Saitama employees. The leaders of the four companies are now facing numerous criminal charges.

在埼玉县调查过程中，联邦调查局发现 Robo Inu、VZZN 和 Lillian Finance 在试图抬高代币价格时也犯有欺诈和其他犯罪行为。除莉莲金融外，所有这些公司都与前埼玉员工关系密切。这四家公司的领导人目前面临多项刑事指控。

The FBI says that these companies and their leaders “made false statements about their cryptocurrencies (“tokens”) and executed sham trades in those tokens (“wash trades”) to create the appearance of trading activity that would make the tokens look like good investments.”

FBI 表示，这些公司及其领导人“对其加密货币（“代币”）做出了虚假陈述，并对这些代币进行了虚假交易（“清洗交易”），以制造交易活动的假象，使这些代币看起来像是良好的投资”。

Acting United States Attorney Joshua Levy said:

美国代理检察官约书亚·利维 (Joshua Levy) 表示：

“This case demonstrates the FBI’s commitment to protecting investors from fraud in the emerging cryptocurrency market. Through a sophisticated investigation, the FBI was able to infiltrate a network of fraudsters and expose their مخطط to manipulate the cryptocurrency market.”

“此案表明了联邦调查局致力于保护投资者免受新兴加密货币市场欺诈的承诺。通过复杂的调查，联邦调查局能够渗透到欺诈者网络中，并揭露他们操纵加密货币市场的手段。”

The FBI’s Shitcoin Catches ‘Market Makers’ in The Act

FBI 的 Shitcoin 在该法案中逮捕了“做市商”

During its investigation into Saitama, the FBI began cooperating with several witnesses to launch its token, NexFundAI, to use as bait to get the dodgy ‘market makers’ interested.

在对埼玉县进行调查期间，FBI 开始与几名目击者合作推出其代币 NexFundAI，作为诱饵来吸引狡猾的“做市商”的兴趣。

Three of these ‘market makers’ — ZM Quant, CLS Global and MyTrade MM — either engaged in, or conspired to engage in, wash trading on behalf of NexFundAI. A fourth ‘market maker’, GotBit and its leadership team were also charged for their involvement in a similar but separate scheme.

其中三个“做市商”——ZM Quant、CLS Global 和 MyTrade MM——代表 NexFundAI 参与或密谋参与清洗交易。第四家“做市商”GotBit 及其领导团队也因参与类似但独立的计划而受到指控。

Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, said the fraud took place in the emerging cryptocurrency market and took advantage of new opportunities presented by blockchain technology:

负责联邦调查局波士顿分部的特工乔迪·科恩表示，欺诈行为发生在新兴的加密货币市场，并利用了区块链技术带来的新机会：

“The fraudsters used these opportunities to quickly generate illicit profits, while leaving behind a trail of deceived investors and endangered retirement accounts.”

“欺诈者利用这些机会迅速赚取非法利润，同时留下了一系列受骗投资者和面临风险的退休账户。”