As much as $660 million may have been lost in an alleged ICO-related scam in the Vietnamese city of Ho Chi Minh, Tuoi Tre News reported.
Vietnam-based company Modern Tech - hired to advertise two cryptocurrencies Ifan and Pincoin, has reportedly swindled a hefty sum out of a purported 32,000 victims by duping them into investing in virtual currencies.
Dozens of people gathered at the headquarters of the Modern Tech over the weekend carrying banners saying “biggest digital money fraud in history” to protest against the company.
Vietnam on Wednesday urged greater vigilance against cryptocurrency transactions and investments, while officials in its economic hub asked police to investigate what could prove to be the country’s largest cryptocurrency fraud.
In a directive, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc told the State Bank of Vietnam, the Ministry of Public Securities and other bodies to tighten the “management of activities related to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency.”
“We are gathering information about the case, but officially we haven’t launched an investigation until we receive accusations from any of the alleged victims,” Le Dong Phong, the police chief of Ho Chin Minh City told Reuters.
He noted that all cryptocurrencies and transactions in cryptocurrencies are illegal in Vietnam.
By Siranush Ghazanchyan