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The Philippines arrested 19 Decentra promoters.
The arrests came before a June 13 fraud alert for the Ponzi scheme. When did the Philippine SEC investigate Decentra?
The Philippine government said on June 15 that Decentra was arrested on June 10.
The SEC approved and deputized a team of PNP-ACG personnel, along with the EIPD, to execute the joint entrapment operation after receiving an email tip on Decentra’s illicit investment solicitation activities.
The bust happened during a Decentra promotion.
In a joint operation on June 11, the SEC Enforcement and Investor Protection Department (EIPD) and Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG) arrested Decentra executives soliciting public investments without a license at a seminar or business presentation in a Quezon City hotel.
Arnel Laxa, Michael Anderson, Arnold Black, Rodolfo A. Asadan, Roberto A. Betinol, Fritzie Abalde, Nely Carvajal, Wyndell Espaol, Jenny A. Tampulan, Alice Fabroa, Lawrence Ruiz, Kieth Reola, Mary Joy Mendoza, Joy Esclamado, Rose Marie Razon, Analiza Gutierrez Narva – We identified Michael Anderson as a Decentra’s central promoter.
According to the press release, two of the Decentra promoters are foreigners.
Decentra offered online investment packages at 99.95 Tether (USDT).
Members are offered up to a 100% return on their initial investment, depending on their package and number of recruits.
In a June 13 recommendation, EIPD claimed Decentra wasn’t registered as a corporation, partnership, or one-person corporation.
It lacked the SRC-required secondary license for investment solicitation.
The Philippine Decentra probe uncovered former Crowd1 Ponzi promoters.
According to the EIPD, Decentra was led by former Crowd1 Asia Pacific Inc. personnel.
Dubai-based Crowd1 is like Decentra. Philippine authorities banned Crowd1 in June 2020. Last month, the prohibition was upheld.
Jonathan Sifuentes departed Mexico for Dubai after his 2022 arrest.
Sifuentes relaunched Xifra Lifestyle as Decentra in the MLM crime capital of the globe. Sifuentes hasn’t attended any Decentra advertising events since escaping to Dubai.
A launch event in Dubai last month and a follow-up in Mexico drew many Xifra Lifestyle investors. Shane Morand ran Sifuentes’ events instead of him.
Morand, a former Organo Gold executive, moved to Dubai to join Decentra’s executive team.
Jonathan Sifuentes faces US regulation. It is unknown if US authorities are investigating Xifra Lifestyle and Decentra.
SimilarWeb lists Martinique (55%), Colombia (24%), Ecuador (9.5%), Spain (6%) and Latvia (5%) as Decentra’s major traffic sources.
The Caribbean island of Martinique The Decentra fraudsters’ attack on the 376,480-person island is worrying.
The SEC warns it will continue to battle investment fraud by going after perpetrators and creating investor education programs to enhance financial literacy.
MLM promoters who conduct securities fraud face a PHP 5 million fine or 21 years in jail.
