Technology

Ponzi schemer behind $201 million Bitcoin scam sentenced to 20 years in federal prison — promised 3% daily returns on Bitcoin investments, left investors reeling

Source

Tom's Hardware

Published

Feb 14, 2026

TL;DR

AI Generated

Ramil Ventura Palafox, the mastermind behind a $201 million Bitcoin Ponzi scheme, has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for promising investors unrealistic 3% daily returns on their Bitcoin investments. The scheme, operated from December 2019 to October 2021, lured investors with the allure of Bitcoin's popularity. Praetorian Group International, Palafox's venture, managed to accumulate $201 million through BTC transfers and fiat currency deposits, resulting in significant losses for investors. Despite Palafox's promise to repay $63 million in damages as part of a plea deal, the chances of investors recovering substantial funds remain slim.

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Lexar regional manager says that RAM prices are expected to double by the end of the year — 'discounts' and stabilized prices result from distributors getting rid of old stock or sourcing products from other regions

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Huawei-led team claims it post-trained DeepSeek's 1.6-trillion-parameter model — 1,000 Ascend 910C chips used in training

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Lexar regional manager says that RAM prices are expected to double by the end of the year — 'discounts' and stabilized prices result from distributors getting rid of old stock or sourcing products from other regions

Tom's Hardware•

1 week ago

Taiwanese startup FormulaV Line wants to break into US market with two new unique cases — company expects products to become available on Newegg later this year

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1 week ago

G.Skill explains how AMD EXPO ULL unlocks additional performance — expanded profiles allow memory makers to include subtiming tweaks for the first time

Tom's Hardware•

1 week ago

Huawei-led team claims it post-trained DeepSeek's 1.6-trillion-parameter model — 1,000 Ascend 910C chips used in training

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1 week ago

Ponzi schemer behind $201 million Bitcoin scam sentenced to 20 years in federal prison — promised 3% daily returns on Bitcoin investments, left investors reeling

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Lexar regional manager says that RAM prices are expected to double by the end of the year — 'discounts' and stabilized prices result from distributors getting rid of old stock or sourcing products from other regions

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Ponzi schemer behind $201 million Bitcoin scam sentenced to 20 years in federal prison — promised 3% daily returns on Bitcoin investments, left investors reeling

TL;DR

Similar Articles

Lexar regional manager says that RAM prices are expected to double by the end of the year — 'discounts' and stabilized prices result from distributors getting rid of old stock or sourcing products from other regions

Taiwanese startup FormulaV Line wants to break into US market with two new unique cases — company expects products to become available on Newegg later this year

G.Skill explains how AMD EXPO ULL unlocks additional performance — expanded profiles allow memory makers to include subtiming tweaks for the first time

Huawei-led team claims it post-trained DeepSeek's 1.6-trillion-parameter model — 1,000 Ascend 910C chips used in training