Real scams that have targeted people in Bhutan. Read, stay informed, share with family.
Successor to the Puth scheme, operated from the US and Australia. Turned Bhutanese bank accounts into an informal foreign currency black market using crypto as the settlement layer. Members paid Nu 95,000 for what should have cost Nu 84,650 at official rates.
Read more →Almost certainly QNet wearing a new jacket. Required a record Nu 650,000 entry fee — the highest of any pyramid scheme in Bhutan. Around 1,000 Bhutanese were drawn in through compulsory online classes before being told what they were paying for. Money routed through personal accounts in Australia.
Read more →Over 200 people in Samtse lost savings to a Dubai-run forex Ponzi. Spread through WhatsApp groups and personal introductions. Linked to the same network as Botalpha, QFX, and Botbro.
Read more →The most persistent pyramid scheme in Bhutan's history. Banned twice — as GoldQuest in 2003 and as QNet in 2022 — it continues operating under aliases like "E-commerce," "Bi Global," and "Beyond Infiniti." Victims include students, workers in Australia, and civil servants.
Read more →One operation, three names, Rs 3,200 crore in fraud. Run by a Dubai-based operator through constant rebranding — QFX became YFX, then Botbro, TLC Coin, Crossalpha, and Minecrypto. Bhutanese investors were recruited via WhatsApp before Indian press exposed the scale.
Read more →AI-trading wrapper on a Ponzi structure. Promised 5-10% monthly returns through "AI forex trading." Part of a network run by a Dubai-based operator now pursued by Interpol. Estimated Nu 36 billion in fraud across the region.
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