A scam cryptocurrency trading platform has been wound up by the courts after stealing £1.5m in clients’ funds.
Gpay Limited was incorporated on 30 August 2017, and later traded as Cryptopoint and XtraderFX, according to a statement from government agency The Insolvency Service.
It was finally closed down in the public interest last week by the High Court, after scamming countless novice traders who were drawn to the platform via online advertising.
These ads, often on social media, claimed that the platform was supported by experienced traders and innovative technology that could help even investors with no prior experience to make money.
They also falsely claimed that Gpay was endorsed by Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert, and entrepreneurs from the hit TV show Dragons’ Den.
“Screw you! Piss off! And good riddance Gpay ltd,” Lewis said in a Facebook post linking to the government announcement.
Government investigators had found that at least 108 clients had lost almost £1.5m, in many cases despite having paid for insurance designed to protect them against any losses.
Those that tried to remove funds from their trading accounts were told that this wasn’t possible unless they sent across copies of photo ID, utility bill and debit/credit card. Such requests were apparently not necessary when the victims initially sent over their deposits.
Withdrawals would also be blocked if customers hadn’t traded with their deposited funds, according to the government.
“GPay persuaded customers to part with substantial sums of money to invest in cryptocurrency trading. This was nothing but a scam as GPay tricked their clients to use their online platform under false pretenses and no customer has benefited as their investments have been lost,” said Insolvency Service chief investigator, David Hill.
“We welcome the court’s decision to wind-up GPay as it will protect anyone else becoming a victim. This scam should also serve as a warning to anyone who conducts trading online that they should carry-out appropriate checks before they invest any money that the company is registered and regulated by the appropriate authorities.”