India’s ED Probes Alleged Decade-Long Crypto Ponzi After 21 Raids Target 4th Bloc

Overview

• The Enforcement Directorate searched 21 premises on Dec. 18 across Karnataka, Maharashtra and Delhi under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
• The probe stems from a Karnataka police complaint and centers on 4th Bloc Consultants, which investigators say defrauded investors in India and abroad since at least 2015.
• Authorities allege the group built exchange‑style dashboards that showed balances and histories without executing real market trades.
• Recruitment tactics reportedly included MLM referrals, small early payouts, and unauthorized use of public‑figure images pushed on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Telegram.
• Searches identified numerous wallet addresses and seized assets, with forensic review of servers under way to map foreign entities and recover funds routed through crypto wallets, hawala channels, shell companies and undeclared accounts via P2P conversions.