Wolf Capital co-founder Travis Ford jailed 5 years over $9.4m Ponzi scheme

Travis Ford, the co-founder of Wolf Capital Crypto Trading Company, has been sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty over his role in a $9.4 million crypto Ponzi scheme.

The U.S. Department of Justice said in a press release that 36-year-old Ford has been handed a 60 months jail sentence and will also pay over $1 million in forfeiture and over $170,000 in restitution. Ford played a key role in a crypto investment scheme that saw 2,800 investors defrauded of millions of dollars between January and August 2023.

On November 14, the DoJ announced that the former Wolf Capital chief executive officer’s sentencing followed his January guilty plea to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Travis Ford lured victims with fake promises

Wolf Capital raised money from unsuspecting investors after Ford and co-conspirators solicited investments via the company’s website and through other social media promotions. The convicted crypto investment firm executive presented himself “as a sophisticated trader, able to deliver high returns.” 

But instead of the 1–2% daily or roughly 547% per year return, investors were left high and dry, with Ford said to have misappropriated and diverted these funds to his selfish gain.

Earlier this week, a Chinese woman accused of defrauding over 128,000 people and from whom the UK seized over $6 billion in Bitcoin (BTC) after her arrest, was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Zhimin Qian, dubbed “cryptoqueen”, held 61,000 BTC taken from Chinese victims in a Ponzi scheme and was arrested in April 2024.

Qian and Ford are among the latest cases of individuals jailed for crypto Ponzi schemes worldwide.