New York Attorney General Letitia James has asked a court to order NovaTech founders Cynthia and Eddy Petion to pay $1.37 billion over an alleged cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. The October 22 court filing seeks disgorgement and prejudgment interest, while four NovaTech promoters have separately agreed to pay nearly $6 million and accepted permanent bans from the securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency industries.

More than 11,000 New Yorkers invested in NovaTech and AWS Mining, according to the attorney general's office. The founders previously faced crypto pyramid scheme charges over an investment operation that collected funds from customers worldwide.

$1.37 Billion Sought After Default Judgment

The court filing seeks $1.1345 billion in disgorgement, the surrender of alleged ill-gotten gains, and $232.47 million in prejudgment interest, which compensates for the time between the alleged losses and a judgment. Together, the amounts total $1.367 billion, which New York wants the founders and NovaTech entities to pay.

The request follows an August 2025 default judgment, entered after the respondents failed to respond to the state's lawsuit. At that stage, the court barred the founders from securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency activities in New York but deferred its decision on financial relief.

New York AG Seeks $1.37B From NovaTech Founders Over Alleged Crypto Ponzi Scheme

New York AG seeks $1.37 billion from NovaTech founders Cynthia and Eddy Petion: $1.13 billion in disgorgement plus $232.5 million in prejudgment interest. Court filings show $1.16 billion in crypto… pic.twitter.com/XDjGMonCXs

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 23, 2026

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James said the businesses drew investors into fraudulent schemes by promising returns from mining and crypto trading. She accused the operators of robbing investors of their life savings while targeting religious and immigrant communities.

In a separate proceeding, a federal court last month ordered repayments in a $31.48 million crypto fraud case. For NovaTech, the requested amount still requires a court decision following the state's October filing.

Investors Deposited $1.16 Billion, but Little Reached Trading

Between August 2019 and May 2023, investors deposited $1.1605 billion in cryptocurrency into NovaTech wallets tracked by CoinPayments, a cryptocurrency payment processor. Court records show only $25.99 million — roughly 2% of the total deposited — reached a trading platform, where losses totaled $18.19 million. Those figures indicate the overwhelming majority of customer funds never reached the trading activity that was supposed to generate returns.

Prosecutors allege NovaTech promised weekly returns of 2% to 4% despite having little trading income to support those claims. The company allegedly used deposits from new investors to pay other customers and provide bonuses for recruitment.

Investigators traced at least $134.5 million in transfers to wallets belonging to Cynthia and Eddy Petion. The company recruited through social media, WhatsApp chats, and prayer groups, including Haitian communities in New York.

Federal regulators described WhatsApp-based crypto investment fraud in another case that resulted in a June judgment, and a separate 2026 crypto Ponzi prosecution involved alleged payouts funded by new deposits instead of trading profits.

NovaTech collapsed in 2023, leaving tens of thousands of investors unable to recover their cryptocurrency. New York's filing describes losses among customers across the United States and abroad.

Four Promoters Agree to Nearly $6 Million in Payments

New York settled claims against Martin Zizi, Frantz Ciceron, Ricardo Roy Sr., and James Corbett over their roles as NovaTech promoters. The agreements require approximately $5.98 million in payments and permanently bar all four from securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency activities.

Zizi agreed to pay $2.9 million, while Ciceron will pay $2.05 million under the settlements. Corbett will pay $750,000, and Roy's payment is $275,861, with the funds intended to benefit victims.

The case began with a June 2024 lawsuit against NovaTech, AWS Mining, and several people associated with both operations. AWS Mining collapsed in 2019 after promising monthly returns of 15% to 20%, and the Petions later established NovaTech.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the U.S. derivatives regulator, has pursued other alleged crypto and forex Ponzi schemes involving recruitment bonuses. In New York, the court must still decide the $1.37 billion request against the Petions and the NovaTech entities.

Source: Blockonomi