Summary
- Rodney Burton has pleaded guilty to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business linked to a $1.8 billion cryptocurrency fraud scheme.
- Burton gained over $7.8 million from the scheme and recruited celebrities for promotion.
- He could face a maximum of five years in prison, with sentencing set for July 23.
Rodney Burton, a Florida resident known as "Bitcoin Rodney," entered a guilty plea in a Baltimore federal court this week for conspiring to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business associated with a $1.8 billion cryptocurrency fraud, as stated by prosecutors.
The 56-year-old from Miami, who also resides in Prince George's County, Maryland, acknowledged his role in promoting HyperFund, a cryptocurrency platform that prosecutors argue functioned as a massive wire-fraud operation targeting global investors.
Documents from the court reveal that Burton conspired from June 2020 to January 2022 to deliver unlicensed money-transmitting services that facilitated the promotion of HyperFund while enriching himself. The platform was marketed to investors as a genuine crypto investment opportunity, promising daily returns ranging from 0.5% to 1% on "memberships" until an investor’s initial investment doubled or tripled.
HyperFund claimed that these payouts were partially funded by profits from large-scale crypto-mining operations, which prosecutors contend never existed. By 2021, the company had begun to halt all investor withdrawals.
Burton allegedly managed a network of companies that falsely claimed to offer consulting services but acted as unlicensed money transmitters, directing investor funds through the fraudulent scheme. Prosecutors assert that he personally profited over $7.8 million from the operation, including funds from victims based in Maryland.
He is facing a potential sentence of up to five years for the conspiracy charge, with sentencing scheduled before U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett on July 23. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina A. Hoffman is overseeing the prosecution of this case, which authorities indicate highlights ongoing scrutiny of cryptocurrency platforms accused of masking fraud behind investment allure.
As reported by Rolling Stone, "Bitcoin Rodney" leveraged his connections with celebrities such as actor Jamie Foxx and rapper Rick Ross to enhance his visibility, and he hosted a crypto conference in Miami in 2021 featuring appearances from "Shark Tank" investor Draymond Green, "Wolf of Wall Street" author Jordan Belfort, singer Akon, and comedian Tiffany Haddish.