CFTC Secures Federal Court Order to Recover $2.3M for Victims of Romance Scam Debiex

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has obtained a federal court order to recover $2.3 million for victims of a romance scam orchestrated by false digital asset platform Debiex. The court order, issued on March 13, found Debiex liable for fraud tied to digital asset commodity trading, including the misappropriation of more than $2 million from customers.

The order prohibits Debiex from participating in any CFTC-regulated markets or registering with the Commission. Additionally, Debiex has been ordered to pay $221,466 in civil monetary penalties and over $2.2 million in restitution.

In the scheme, relief defendant Zhāng Chéng Yáng, was identified as a money mule who facilitated customer funds misappropriation via his digital asset wallet. In a separate order, the court ordered that approximately $120,000 worth of digital assets still held in Zhang’s wallet be returned to the affected customer. 

CFTC filed a complaint against Debiex for executing a sophisticated fraudulent scheme in January 2024. The scheme involved “Solicitors” who contacted customers via social media and “befriended or romanced” the customers, “Customer Service” which claimed to manage trading accounts, and “Money Mules,” such as, but not limited to, Zhang. 

Contrary to promises made to customers, Debiex never used the funds to trade on behalf of the customers. Instead, the platform misappropriated customer assets while its websites mimicked the features of a legitimate live trading platform. The trading accounts shown on these sites were entirely fabricated.