The US Federal Court has issued a verdict against the creators of EmpiresX, accusing them of organizing a major cryptocurrency scam. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has secured a fine of more than $130 million, as well as a lifetime ban on trading in the country's financial markets.

The project managers — Emerson Pires, Flavio Goncalves and Joshua Nicholas — misled investors by promising unrealistically high returns. However, instead of real trading, they used funds for personal needs, buying bitcoins (BTC), ether (ETH) and stablecoins (USDT).

The EmpiresX scheme collected at least $40 million from victims, but after an investigation, the authorities managed to return only $22.8 million. While Nicholas was arrested and pleaded guilty to securities fraud, the other two founders fled to Brazil, where laws prohibit their extradition to the United States.

The court's decision sends a clear signal to the market: regulators are stepping up the fight against crypto fraud and will pursue those who violate the rules.