Tantin Exchange (TTX) Prepares to Launch, Promises "Millions" and "Zero Risk", but Its Founder Yu Lingxiong Has a History of Controversy

With additional reports by Nathaniel Cajuday

Several social media posts have been promoting the upcoming launch and airdrop of the Tantin Exchange (TTX) in the Philippines, but its founder, Yu Lingxiong, has stirred controversy due to reported involvement in multi-level marketing (MLM) and pyramid schemes. The platform was also marketed in Cambodia and was flagged as unregistered.

Tantin Exchange in PH

According to social media posts, Tantin Exchange is set to launch in the Philippines on May 8, 2025, at 9 p.m., accompanied by an ongoing airdrop offering 100 $CTC with “no strings attached.”

$CTC is the native token of TTX and is distributed as an airdrop reward to those who will register on its platform.

Based on promotional materials, the exchange is being marketed as the project that will “break the chains of poverty” in the Philippines.

The posts also claimed that participants could earn “referral bonuses of 3 $CTC up to 30 levels” and promoted the platform with the phrase “make millions with zero investment.” They have also been encouraging individuals to join Zoom meetings as a way to further draw them into the platform.

Some posts also claim that $CTC will be listed at approximately $1 in fiat. They further promote TTX as a “big exchange,” emphasizing that it has no presales, no public sales, no deposits, and no investments, and touting it as “no risk” and “no scam.”

As of this writing, Tantin’s $CTC is not yet listed on cryptocurrency aggregators CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap. The only $CTC that exists is the native token of Creditcoin, a blockchain-based interoperable lending protocol, as defined by OKX Learn.

As Compared to SEC-Charged Forsage

In 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed charges against 11 individuals involved in Forsage, a fraudulent crypto pyramid and Ponzi scheme that raised more than $300 million from millions of retail investors worldwide.

Initially, Forsage claimed to be the world’s first 100% decentralized crowdfunding platform.

Forsage and Tantin Exchange share operational similarities, both relying on referral-based incentives and recruitment-driven growth. While Forsage has been exposed as a fraudulent scheme, TTX’s unclear structure and marketing tactics raise concerns.

It should be noted that Forsage presented itself as a decentralized finance platform using smart contracts, while TTX markets itself as a crypto exchange and token project.

The SEC operated a matrix system where new investors’ funds were used to pay earlier participants, promising earnings through “spillovers,” while TTX promoted $CTC and offered recruitment bonuses but lacked transparency on its revenue model.

In terms of promotion, Forsage leveraged social media to spread its message, claiming risk-free and “endless” earnings through smart contracts. TTX also used marketing, including promotional videos and virtual meetings, to further encourage prospective traders.

Forsage lacked a real product or business model; accordingly, TTX raises similar concerns with its focus on recruitment, unclear revenue model, and promises of high returns.

The Philippine SEC issued a cease and desist order against Forsage in 2020 for illegally soliciting unregistered crypto investments through a crowdfunding scheme.

In 2022, the U.S. SEC cited the Philippine SEC’s early action in its case against Forsage, which had defrauded investors of over $300 million globally through a crypto-based pyramid and Ponzi scheme. Accordingly, the local commission praised the U.S. SEC for charging Forsage’s leaders.

Yu Lingxiong and TTX Issue in Cambodia

Lingxiong, a China-born Cambodian national, was noted to be under scrutiny for his alleged involvement in multiple pyramid schemes in China.

He reportedly founded a Chinese business association in Cambodia that sponsors the China-Cambodia Volunteer Team, now entangled in controversy after one of its members, Chen Baorong, was detained for allegedly helping fabricate the widely publicized but now-discredited “blood slave” story involving Chinese national Li Yayuanlun.

Moreover, an X post by the account CyberScamMonitor, a tracker of online scam and gambling operations in Southeast Asia, highlighted Lingxiong’s resurfacing in Cambodia last month, where he is now promoting a new project, Tantin Exchange, and its associated token, $CTC. Promotional videos showing TTX operating from Morgan Tower prompted a notice from Morgan stating the exchange is unlicensed, its lease has been terminated, and power to the premises has been cut.

In 2023, CyberScamMonitor pointed out that he registered five companies under the Tantin brand and recently launched the platform, which is now being heavily promoted on social media in Cambodia.

Further, Yu, who became a Cambodian national in 2017, had past ties to scam-linked