THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED (see below)
Thousands of users on Telegram had signed up to a crypto bot called CryptoTrading promising a 4-5% daily return on their cryptocurrency, 6 months later it has all stopped paying out and they can't access their initial investment funds. Initially the bot claimed technical issues but slowly users have had their bots deactivated.
It seemed like a dream come true for many of the investors looking to put their cryptocurrency to good use, the website https://cryptotrading.trade mentions backing from Eagle Financial Group and that these were a team of "expert programming, math, encryption and security specialists" that had ways to ensure a return. The more you put in the more return you got and of course there was a referal bonus paid as a percentage. The site grew to about 37,000 users all putting in money. There was positive feedback of evidence of the 4-5% payout so users had rave reviews of the website.
To access the site there is a Telegram Bot that you sign up to. They provided one for each type of main cryptocurrency. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoincash were all supported over the time it was active. A simple interface allowed users to send money to the bot. The bot would then keep track of the amount of interest earned. The user could only withdraw when the level of interest had met a certain level. When the system actually paid out the interest it encouraged the bot to become more popular and it was then described on its website as the "#1 BOT ON TELEGRAM".
By the end of August 2018 many users of the site were getting anxious as the bot was unable to payout. The admins reassured everyone that developers were working day and night to resolve issues, but after a week of this many grew suspicious. All the money was still being moved out of new accounts and put into another account. Slowly the Telegram bots have been disabled to a point where the only message seen is:
"We have paid 1280 BTC out in withdrawals. Due to btc price drop and we experienced issues which meant we could not continue. We have paid back most investment. We are not accepting any new investments and we are working to pay back all remaining capital investments.
Only the owner is responsible for investments. We have received reports of threats to admins and the team who helped and supported us. These acts will suspend your account and you will NOT receive a refund.
Crypto Trading Owner"
A group of admins and investors of the bot have started a new Telegram group called "CTB Refund" https://t.me/CTBrefund this is where they are trying to track down the person(s) behind the bot and claim a refund. Millions have been stolen from users of this Ponzi scheme. Many users are upset about losing all their money and want to get it back.
We do not recommend investing in Crypto Telegram Bots
UPDATE
The bot finally started to payout refunds however it was limited to a max withdrawal amount every 6 hours. Some got some of their investment back but the bot was pulled after a certain amount was paid back. Being a Ponzi scheme it was never going to cover the costs of the original investment as some have profited from this.
The owner of the bot has evidence of hacking of the bot and thinks that other admins have been working to steal the code. This is his reason for shutting it down and returning some of the money. This has still left many investors furious as they have lost most of their investment amount, many are contacting the Police over this fraud.
UPDATE
The bot finally started to payout refunds however it was limited to a max withdrawal amount every 6 hours. Some got some of their investment back but the bot was pulled after a certain amount was paid back. Being a Ponzi scheme it was never going to cover the costs of the original investment as some have profited from this.
The owner of the bot has evidence of hacking of the bot and thinks that other admins have been working to steal the code. This is his reason for shutting it down and returning some of the money. This has still left many investors furious as they have lost most of their investment amount, many are contacting the Police over this fraud.