According to reports, the Russian businesswoman Valeria Fedyakina, alias ‘Bitmama’, was arrested on fraud charges that could amount to $150 million. The influencer, also known as ‘the queen of cryptocurrencies’was dedicated to offering investments in cryptographic assets, but is now accused of allegedly fleeing with her investors’ money.
The 28 year old model She would have been detained on September 15 by the Russian police in Moscow, according to the magazine Moscow and news networks Asset and Readovkanative to Telegram.
The reports indicate that, despite having six months pregnant at the time of his arrest, they decided to arrest her because the police considered her to be a flight risk. If found guilty, ‘Bitmama’ could face a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
Reports indicate that, for now, the ‘queen of cryptocurrencies’ is being held in a preventive detention center. She will remain there awaiting a court hearing due to her residence permit in the United Arab Emirates, she says from Metaverse Post.
Who is the ‘queen of cryptocurrencies’?
With photos showing off her luxurious life, the model positioned herself as a crypto influencer more than 55 thousand followers on Instagram and almost 7 thousand on X (Twitter). She is also the founder and CEO of bitmamaits own cryptocurrency-related platform.
Valeria Fedyakina has a residence permit in the United Arab Emirates and on her social channels she mentions Dubai as her location. Last January, she was among the ’10 innovative and motivated women entrepreneurs to continue’ in 2023, from the middle International Business Times.
Bitmama even used to talk about the potential of cryptocurrencies to evade sanctions on Russia and local media reports that he worked with “rich” clients.
“It usually receives cash from clients and withdraws funds abroad for a fee,” Moskvich magazine claims. They add that he was “working with crypto exchanges for a long time” and had “extensive connections” with “state-owned companies and corporations.”
“At the beginning of the war, Valeria Fedyakina already had excellent connections established with the entire hidden market and it was time to start monetizing them. She created a pyramid scheme, charging extra for cash and with a daily turnover of more than 30 million dollars. “She also accumulated money through two other schemes: giving money to the owners of the exchange houses so that they circulate it and paying 20% monthly,” they say. Metaverse Post.
Bitmama is accused of $150 million fraud
Reports say that Fedyakina, who worked with cryptocurrency exchanges, received cash from clients, with the promise of transferring the funds to the United Arab Emirates for an additional fee. This is contrary to the typical practice of charging a commission for such transactions.
As explained from CryptoNewsthe “daily turnover” of the ‘queen of cryptocurrencies’ amounted to “tens of millions of dollars” and promised investors a 1% return on the funds they deposited with it.
The arrest came after an anonymous “acquaintance” claimed that Fedyakina filed a fraud complaint. The complainant alleges that the businesswoman tricked him into handing over almost 70 million dollars. The investor was supposed to receive at least a 1% bonus after the exchange, but over time it became clear that the influencer had no intention of handing over the money.
When the allegations came to light, the ‘queen of cryptocurrencies’ allegedly attempted to “escape” with her investors’ funds. This over a suspicious cash transfer in the United Arab Emirates, in which she took $150 million in cash from “a friend.”
The case involves multiple Russian crypto exchanges, including City, Lyublino, Gorbushka, Sadovod and the market South Gate. These moneychangers entrusted their funds to a woman from Dubai who offered them attractive rates and high returns, but she “was actually operating a financial pyramid,” Russian authorities suspect.
His most recent social media post is a photo from September 6 on Instagram, where he appears in a pool and the location says ‘Dubai’.
Editorial Team The editorial team of EMPRENDEDOR.com, which for more than 27 years has worked to promote entrepreneurship.