Despite his promises, Pinillo had created no trading platform whatsoever, was doing no crypto trading, and simply pocketed all the money. Any payments made to his customers during the fraud were taken from newer investors, in classic Ponzi fashion.
Former pastor charged with crypto scheme in which he stole $5.9 million from his former congregants
The CFTC has filed suit against Francier Obando Pinillo, an American former pastor who targeted his former congregants and other unsophisticated investors with a crypto pyramid scheme called "Solanofi". He promised victims that his supposed automated trading system was "risk free", and that they would earn guaranteed profits as high as almost 35% compounded monthly — which he "proved" to them with an online dashboard showing faked balances. They were also encouraged to recruit friends and family, and incentivized with referral fees.
- "CFTC Charges Washington State Pastor with Fraud, Misappropriation in Multilevel Marketing Scheme Targeting Hispanic Americans", US Commodity Futures Trading Commission [archive]