NAIROBI, KENYA — Thousands of Kenyan and Nigerian investors are counting their losses after a popular cryptocurrency trading platform, CBEX, abruptly locked users out of their accounts, wiping out millions of shillings in digital assets.
CBEX, which had grown increasingly popular across Kenya and West Africa, marketed itself as an AI-powered trading platform offering guaranteed daily returns, referral commissions, and easy withdrawals. However, over the past weekend, users were shocked to find their accounts inaccessible or their balances reduced to zero.
One Nairobi-based user, who had invested approximately $6,000 (about KSh 778,000), reported waking up to a completely drained crypto wallet. “I trusted the platform because withdrawals were instant and the profits seemed legit,” he said. “But overnight, everything vanished.”
The fallout isn’t limited to Kenya. Similar complaints have emerged from users in Nigeria and Egypt, many of whom were drawn to CBEX by the promise of automated crypto trading powered by artificial intelligence.
While CBEX operated without a known physical office in Kenya, it had gained traction through WhatsApp and Telegram groups, influencers, and online seminars.
The platform also capitalized on the growing interest in cryptocurrency in Africa, where young investors are turning to digital assets in search of financial freedom.
Some investors who lodged complaints via the private messaging service Telegram reportedly received responses from CBEX, attributing the problem to a hacking incident and assuring users that a resolution would be forthcoming.
CBEX later released a statement on the Telegram group that account holders need to undergo several steps to ensure their authenticity on the plaform in order to be compensated their lost digital assets;
- Accounts with funds below $1,000 before any loses, a deposit of $100 is required.
- For accounts with funds exceeding $1,000, a deposit of $200 is required.
- Additionally, traders must keep their deposit receipts to ensure they can prove the authenticity of the account during future withdrawal reviews.
Meanwhile, a wave of anger and distress is spreading across Nigeria as users of the digital financial platform, CBEX, report being unexpectedly locked out of their accounts.
Frustrated individuals have taken to social media to express their anguish, with many posting videos depicting their emotional turmoil and expressing fears of losing their invested funds and the inability to make withdrawals.
The situation escalated in the south-western city of Ibadan, where irate customers reportedly ransacked a CBEX office, removing furniture, air-conditioning units, and a solar panel. As of yet, CBEX has not issued any public statement regarding these events.
The company had previously attracted investors with the promise of doubling their investments on a monthly basis. This occurred against the backdrop of a challenging economic climate in Nigeria, where many citizens are actively seeking avenues to supplement their income.
One investor, identified as Ola, shared his ordeal with Vivid Voice News, expressing fears of losing his substantial investment of 450,000 naira ($280). “I was ready to withdraw all my investment just last week but my friend told me to be patient and wait – and now it has crashed,” Ola lamented.
Numerous other individuals have shared similar narratives online, with one person reporting a staggering loss of $16,000.
While initial issues were noted over the weekend, public outrage reached a boiling point on Monday when access to funds remained blocked.
Financial experts are now warning investors to exercise caution, especially when dealing with unregulated platforms promising unusually high returns.
“This is a classic case of a Ponzi-style operation masked in tech jargon,” said a Nairobi-based fintech analyst. “There was no transparency about who was behind CBEX or how the funds were managed.”
Also Read: Africa’s Digital Leap: How Youth are Fueling the Cryptocurrency Revolution
Kenya’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA) and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) have yet to issue formal statements, though both have repeatedly warned the public against investing in unregulated digital schemes.
Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (Sec), the regulatory body for the investment sector, has yet to respond to a BBC request for comment on the CBEX situation. However, Sec has previously issued warnings to the public regarding the inherent risks associated with unregulated digital platforms and potential Ponzi schemes.
With no clear avenue for redress, affected users are now turning to social media to share their experiences and warn others.
As cryptocurrency adoption continues to rise across Africa, this incident underscores the urgent need for stronger regulation, investor education, and platform due diligence to protect unsuspecting users from financial ruin.
A pattern of crypto platform scams in Kenya and beyond
The rise and fall of CBEX adds to a growing list of cryptocurrency platforms that have collapsed in Africa, leaving behind devastated investors and unanswered questions.
Over the years, a number of schemes—many disguised as innovation-driven tech startups—have siphoned off billions from unsuspecting users across the continent.
For many affected investors, the current crisis evokes painful memories of the 2016 collapse of MMM, another widely popular financial scheme that abruptly froze transactions, leaving countless individuals devastated.
MMM had promised members an extraordinary 30% return on their investment within a mere 30 days, attracting an estimated three million members in Nigeria after its launch in November 2015 before its eventual downfall.
Here are some of the most notable crypto-related schemes and trading platforms that have either collapsed or been flagged as scams:
1. Bitstream Circle (2022)
One of the most notable cases in Kenya involved Bitstream Circle, a crypto trading platform that vanished with investor funds in early 2022.
The platform lured thousands with promises of daily returns of up to 10% through AI-generated crypto trades.
When the site abruptly went offline, it left behind millions of shillings in losses and no trace of its founders.
2. Velox 10 Global (2018)
In 2018, Velox 10 Global, a Brazilian-based crypto investment platform, collapsed after convincing Kenyan investors to pour in money through a multilevel marketing model.
Investors were promised lucrative returns, but the company shut down operations after collecting an estimated KSh 1 billion from East Africans, including high-profile individuals.
3. Decentralized Finance (DeFi) scams
More recently, decentralized finance platforms like Forsage — which operated on the Ethereum and Tron blockchains — drew attention in Kenya.
Marketed as peer-to-peer systems, these platforms turned out to be pyramid schemes. In 2020, the Philippine SEC declared Forsage illegal, and several African users reported losses soon after.
4. Global Crypto Investments (GCI)
In Uganda, Global Crypto Investments (GCI) collapsed in 2021 after collecting over UGX 10 billion from unsuspecting traders.
Promising weekly returns of up to 40%, the company folded suddenly, and the founders went into hiding, leaving victims across Kampala, Jinja, and Mbarara.
5. Mirror Trading International (MTI) – South Africa
In 2020, MTI became one of the largest Bitcoin-related scams in the world. Based in South Africa, it claimed to use a sophisticated trading bot to generate returns.
It drew in over 260,000 global investors, including thousands from Kenya and Nigeria.
When the scheme collapsed, losses were estimated at more than $589 million. Its CEO, Johann Steynberg, fled the country but was later arrested in Brazil.
6. Dunamiscoin – Uganda
In 2019, Dunamiscoin collapsed after convincing thousands of Ugandans to invest in a scheme promising high returns and job opportunities.
With a strong presence in Masaka and Kampala, the company abruptly shut down operations, prompting arrests and widespread investigations. Many victims never recovered their savings.
7. BitClub Network – Global
Touted as a Bitcoin mining pool, BitClub Network promised investors profits from shared mining rewards. It operated in several African countries and across the globe.
In 2019, U.S. authorities dismantled the operation, arresting its key founders. The scheme was revealed to have swindled more than $722 million from investors.
8. Pinkoin (InksNation) – Nigeria
Claiming to use blockchain to eradicate poverty, InksNation launched its own token called Pinkoin, which promised universal basic income for Nigerians.
The platform attracted widespread attention but was declared illegal by Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission in 2020.
Its founder went into hiding, and thousands of users were left with worthless digital tokens.
9. OneCoin – Global
Marketed as a revolutionary cryptocurrency, OneCoin turned out to be one of the largest crypto scams in history, stealing more than $4 billion worldwide.
The scheme reached East Africa, including Kenya, where locals invested heavily.
The platform collapsed after the mysterious disappearance of its founder, Dr. Ruja Ignatova, dubbed the “Crypto Queen,” in 2017.
10. AWS Mining – Brazil-based
AWS Mining operated across several African countries, including Kenya and South Africa. It offered investment plans supposedly linked to cryptocurrency mining.
In 2018, the platform collapsed, and many global regulators, including those in Brazil and the U.S., issued fraud warnings. African users were left without recourse.
11. PCEX – India-based exchange with regional impact (2023–2025)
Though not officially declared a scam, PCEX, a crypto trading platform based in India, began attracting scrutiny in 2023 after users across Kenya, Nigeria, and other parts of Africa raised alarm over withdrawal restrictions, delayed transactions, and poor platform support.
The platform had promoted itself as a fully licensed exchange with white-label offerings and regional partners, luring crypto entrepreneurs to build exchanges under its banner.
However, by late 2023, reports of users being unable to access funds or receive responses from the support team began circulating widely on crypto forums, Telegram and WhatsApp groups.
While no formal charges or shutdowns have been confirmed, PCEX is now widely viewed with suspicion, particularly among African traders who fear they may have fallen into yet another unregulated and potentially exploitative crypto venture.
These incidents have left many wary but have also exposed regulatory gaps across the continent. While cryptocurrencies remain largely unregulated in Kenya and much of Africa, authorities are increasingly being pushed to strengthen consumer protections and clamp down on fraudulent platforms.
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