The U.S. Department of Justice has opened a scheme for victims of OneCoin. This will be the first government-run scheme to reclaim losses from one of the biggest scams in crypto history. The total worth of assets forfeited over $40 million is available for refund.
What victims need to do
On April 13, 2026, the DOJ opened a petition for a remission process for investors who purchased OneCoin from 2014 until 2019 and made a net loss after accounting for any withdrawals or previous recoveries. To qualify for the benefits, you must submit a completed petition form along with supporting documentation by June 30th, 2026.
You can file petitions online at onecoinremission.com or by mail. The DOJ and remission administrator impose no fees for participation, nor is legal representation necessary.
Kroll Settlement Administration LLC is overseeing the process on behalf of the Criminal Division of the DOJ.
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The brutal math: $40M against $4B in losses
The compensation pool exposes the enormous gap between what was stolen and what can be returned. Victims invested over $4 billion worldwide in the fraudulent cryptocurrency, and some independent estimates place global losses closer to $19 billion. The $40 million currently available represents only a fraction of that, and filing a petition does not guarantee payment.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York called the announcement an important step toward returning funds to those harmed, while acknowledging that no recovery can fully undo the damage. FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. noted that many victims unknowingly depleted their savings for an investment scheme that would never pay out.
How OneCoin worked, and how it collapsed
Established in 2014, OneCoin functioned through a worldwide multi-level marketing (MLM) network that operated from Sofia, Bulgaria. It sold a cryptocurrency that had no real blockchain. This cryptocurrency launched with an audacious claim to displace Bitcoin on the cryptocurrency rankings and reached second place by market capitalization before collapsing, since it turned out that the coins had no utility and can’t be traded on any reputable exchange.
Authorities from Latvia’s and Sweden’s central banks, as well as Norway’s financial regulator, flagged the scheme as likely a Ponzi. Then Bulgarian police raided its headquarters in 2018.
Co-founders: one jailed, one still a fugitive
Co-founders Ruja Ignatova and Karl Sebastian Greenwood ran the scheme from 2014 to 2019. Greenwood was arrested in the 2018 raid and later sentenced to 20 years in federal prison in the U.S. Ignatova disappeared in October 2017, boarding a Ryanair flight from Sofia to Athens and vanishing. She remains on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, with a $5 million reward for information leading to her arrest.
Her location remains unknown. A 2025 documentary alleged she was living in Cape Town, South Africa. Separate investigative reporting has linked her to Russia. In January 2026, Guernsey’s Royal Court confiscated over £8.5 million held in an account connected to Ignatova after she failed to respond to a forfeiture application within 28 days.
Victim advocates and broader context
Jen McAdam, chair of the OneCoin Victims Steering Committee and one of the most prominent victim advocates, had been actively pushing for legal support for a UK High Court class action, a case that hit a major setback in early 2026 when both the litigation funder and legal representatives withdrew. The DOJ’s remission program offers a separate path that does not require legal representation or third-party funding.
The compensation process is part of a wider push by U.S. authorities to claw back assets from crypto fraud cases and return them to victims. For the millions who were defrauded, the June 30, 2026 deadline is the most urgent date on the calendar.
