Alleged Mastermind of $165 Million Cryptocurrency Ponzi Scheme Facing Federal Charges after Deportation from Fiji

GAINESVILLE, Ga. - After allegedly perpetrating a $165 million Ponzi scheme, fleeing to Fiji, and being deported back to the United States, Edward Zimbardi will appear in federal court today to face wire fraud and money laundering charges. “Zimbardi allegedly tricked thousands of people to invest in his ‘Crypto Program’ with false promises of enormous returns. Instead, he spent the money on risky currency trades, payments to early investors, and treating himself to a house and expensive vehicles,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “When his scam imploded, he allegedly tried to evade federal prosecution by fleeing to the other side of the world. Thanks to law enforcement and diplomatic authorities in Fiji and the United States, Zimbardi is back on American soil and will face trial.” “Zimbardi allegedly preyed on trusting individuals through a complex scheme to separate people from their hard-earned money and then reportedly fled more than 7300 miles to the South Pacific,” said Marlo Graham, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Scammers are trying everything they can to defraud people out of their hard-earned money, but the FBI is doing everything we can to make sure they don’t succeed, no matter where they hide.” According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: Between June 2022 and August 2023, Edward Zimbardi allegedly created and promoted an alleged Ponzi scheme called The Crypto Program. In his promotional videos and websites, Zimbardi allegedly told investors that The Crypto Program was an opportunity to invest in advertising packages with a guaranteed 25% monthly return. Investors were encouraged to pay for their advertising packages by moving cryptocurrency into wallets Zimbardi secretly controlled. Together, thousands of investors sent more than $165 million to those wallets. Instead of using investments to buy advertising packages, Zimbardi allegedly gambled more than $34 million on risky foreign currency bets and lost substantial money. To keep the Ponzi scheme going, Zimbardi allegedly used funds from later investors to pay earlier investors. Finally, he allegedly spent at least $10 million on personal expenses, including buying a house for his son, purchasing luxury vehicles, and making alimony payments to his ex-wife. When The Crypto Program imploded in August 2023 and victims lost their invested funds, Zimbardi traveled to Hawaii, Fiji, and other locations around the world. In July 2025, after becoming aware of the FBI’s investigation, he fled to Fiji and lived there for over a year. In May 2026, Zimbardi canceled plans to attend his son’s wedding in Virginia after suspecting—correctly—that FBI agents would attempt to arrest him there. On August 14, 2026, after Fijian authorities learned of the charges against Zimbardi, they deported Zimbardi to the United States, in coordination with the FBI and U.S. Department of State. On July 8, 2026, Edward Zimbardi, 59, of Flowery Branch, Georgia, was charged in a federal indictment with twelve counts of wire fraud, twelve counts of money laundering, and one count of money laundering conspiracy. He will appear before a federal magistrate judge in Los Angeles, California later today, and the Government will argue he should be detained in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending further proceedings in the Northern District of Georgia. Individuals who invested in The Crypto Program are encouraged to provide victim information to the FBI at http://fbi.gov/thecryptoprogram. The FBI will contact victims at a later date regarding further proceedings, including potential documentation needed for restitution.