NY Seeks $1.37B From Fled Crypto Founders

New York Seeks $1.37 Billion from Nova Tech Founders

New York Attorney General Letitia James is taking aggressive legal action against the founders of Nova Tech, a collapsed cryptocurrency trading platform. The state has asked the New York County Supreme Court to order Cynthia and Eddy Petion, along with Nova Tech and associated entities, to pay roughly $1.37 billion in total damages, disgorgement, and accrued interest.

The massive request comes after a court issued a default judgment against the couple in August 2025. However, recovering those funds will be challenging because the Petions fled the United States before responding to the state lawsuit.

Promoters Settle for $6 Million and Face Industry Bans

While the founders remain at large, four top promoters of the Nova Tech platform have reached settlement agreements with Attorney General James's office.

• Martin Zizi
• Frantz Ciceron
• Ricardo Roy Sr.
• James Corbett

Together, these four promoters will pay nearly $6 million, which will go directly into a fund to help victimized investors. Furthermore, all four individuals have agreed to permanent bans from working in the securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency sectors.

How the Scheme Preyed on Prayer Groups and Immigrants

According to official state findings, Nova Tech deliberately targeted tight-knit immigrant communities, with a specific focus on Haitian New Yorkers. The promoters built trust by embedding themselves in religious prayer groups, hosting WhatsApp group chats, and distributing advertisements translated into Haitian Creole.

"These scammers targeted immigrant and religious communities with the promise of a better life but instead robbed them of their life savings," stated Attorney General Letitia James.

In New York alone, more than 11,000 investors fell victim to the scheme, contributing to a global victim count reaching hundreds of thousands.

Wild Yield Claims vs. Actual Trading Losses

Nova Tech falsely claimed to be a fully registered U.S. hedge fund broker. The platform enticed victims by advertising weekly returns ranging between 2% and 4%, which equated to an annual yield of over 140%.

In reality, the firm operated as a classic Ponzi scheme. Financial records show that between 2019 and 2023, Nova Tech allocated under $26 million to its actual trading provider—and managed to lose around $18.2 million of that money in real trades.

Instead of generating income from legitimate trading activities, Nova Tech funded weekly payouts and referral rewards using fresh deposits from newly recruited investors. When the system predictably collapsed in 2023, tens of thousands of members were blocked from withdrawing their funds.

Tracking the Missing Millions

Records provided by crypto payment processor CoinPayments show that users deposited about $1.16 billion worth of digital assets into Nova Tech's wallets between August 2019 and May 2023.

Cynthia Petion was registered as the sole authorized user on the account. Investigators discovered that at least $134.5 million was transferred directly from platform funds into personal wallets belonging to the Petions.

After accounting for the small amount sent to trading providers, New York state is demanding $1.13 billion in disgorgement along with $232 million in statutory interest.

A Pattern of Fraudulent Mining and Investment Schemes

Nova Tech was not the Petions' first involvement in fraudulent platforms. Prior to Nova Tech, both Cynthia and Eddy Petion were major U.S. promoters for AWS Mining, an entity that promised monthly returns of 15% to 20% from crypto mining before shutting down in 2019.

In a WhatsApp exchange cited in court documents, Cynthia Petion personally admitted to earning at least $3 million from her promotional work with AWS Mining.

The legal crackdown began in June 2024 when Attorney General James filed a lawsuit accusing Nova Tech and AWS Mining of defrauding investors out of over $1 billion. Two months later, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought additional charges against the Petions regarding a related $650 million fraud.

As with all digital asset investments, potential investors should remain cautious. Past performance of digital assets or operators is no guarantee of future returns or operational performance.