Executive Summary
- Ruja Ignatova, the fugitive founder of the OneCoin scheme, has been given until December 16 by Guernsey authorities to object to the forfeiture of her assets.
- The assets in question are approximately £8.8 million in proceeds from the sale of two London properties, which German prosecutors intend to use for victim compensation.
- Ignatova has been missing since 2017 and is on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list with a $5 million reward offered for information leading to her arrest.
Ruja Ignatova, the fugitive known as the ‘Cryptoqueen’ and wanted by the FBI for orchestrating the multi-billion dollar OneCoin fraud, has been given a 28-day ultimatum by authorities in Guernsey. She has until December 16 to formally object to a court application seeking the forfeiture of assets linked to her fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme.
The forfeiture order, sought by German prosecutors in Bielefeld with the cooperation of Guernsey authorities, targets funds held in a Royal Bank of Scotland account on the island. These funds are the proceeds from the sale of two London properties, a penthouse apartment and a smaller flat, which were sold for a combined £11.4 million. After costs and fees, approximately £8.8 million remained as of May 2024.
According to Bielefeld’s chief prosecutor, Carsten Nowak, the recovered money is intended to compensate the victims of the OneCoin scheme, which the FBI estimates defrauded investors of more than $4 billion. The properties were initially purchased through Guernsey-based shell companies, a structure that was placed under a restraint order in 2021.
Ms. Ignatova, a German citizen born in Bulgaria, founded OneCoin in 2014. She disappeared in 2017, days after a warrant was issued for her arrest in the United States. She remains one of the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted fugitives, with the U.S. State Department offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to her arrest.
Legal Proceedings
The application for asset forfeiture will be formally heard by Guernsey’s Royal Court on January 13, 2026. This action is separate from a worldwide asset freeze brought against Ms. Ignatova in London’s High Court on behalf of investors seeking compensation. Given that Ms. Ignatova has not been seen for eight years, it is important to note that all individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.