HyperVerse promoter arrested as allegations made that CEO may not exist

January 9, 2024

A promoter for the collapsed crypto investment HyperVerse has reportedly been arrested in the US for his alleged role in the scheme.

According to the Guardian, Rodney Burton, aka ‘Bitcoin Rodney’ was arrested in Florida on Friday 5^th January where he now faces charges.

The online publication said that The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) alleged in court documents that a ‘network of promoters of the Hyper schemes made “fraudulent promotional presentations” for an investment operation that generated revenue from bitcoin mining, which the IRS alleges did not exist.’

This is the first-time charges have been made against someone for their involvement in the HyperVerse scheme.

The HyperVerse scheme was run by an organisation called HyperTech.

It also operated under the names HyperFund, HyperTech, HyperCapital and HyperNation.

HyperVerse CEO ‘does not appear to exist’

The Guardian has also reported that HyperVerse CEO Steven Reece Lewis ‘does not appear to exist’

Steven Reece Lewis was introduced to investors with an impressive list of qualifications and achievements. However, it’s been reported that none of organisation cited can find any record of him. This includes Adobe, Goldman Sachs and the University of Cambridge, from which he supposedly held a master’s degree.

HyperVerse links to Australian blockchain directors

An investigation by the Guardian Australia revealed the scheme’s links to Australian Sam Lee and his business partner Ryan Xu. Both were directors of Blockchain Global, the Australian blockchain company, which collapsed reportedly owing creditors $58m.

Lee was the chairman of the HyperTech group, while Xu was listed as the group’s founder. Both men supposedly featured prominently in online promotional material for the Hyper schemes.

Financial authorities around the world issued multiple consumer warnings regarding the HyperVerse scheme.

The UK regulator, The Financial Conduct Authority, issued a warning in 2021 that UK investors were being targeted by an unregulated company.

However, the regulators in Australia are facing criticism for not raising concerns and warning consumers sooner.

How did the HyperVerse investment scheme work?

The scheme offered investors a membership to the HyperVerse with the minimum amount reportedly being $300USD.

This was then converted to HyperUnits which were linked to various crypto tokens and could be withdrawn and converted to other cryptocurrencies when they matured.

According to reports the scheme offered minimum returns of 0.5% a day, with a 300% return over 600 days.

Reports also suggest that Members were also paid HyperUnits to recruit new members.

A report from Chainalysis the US-based blockchain analysts estimates consumer losses to HyperVerse in 2022 amounted to US$1.3bn.

What can I do if I invested in HyperVerse?

If you’re a UK investor and you invested in HyperVerse the FCA says you won’t have access to the Financial Ombudsman Service if you have a complaint.

It also says Investors won’t be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and it’s unlikely you’d get your money back if the firm went out of business.

Important Information

You do not need to use a claims management company (CMC) to make your complaint to your bank and if your complaint is not successful you can refer it yourself to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) for free.