Critical risk level Prosecuted

HyperFund

Crypto "membership" scheme that US prosecutors valued at $1.89 billion; its co-founder was indicted in January 2024 and two promoters have been convicted.

Also known as: HyperVerse, HyperNation, HyperTech, HyperCapital, HyperOne, HyperCommunity

Type of scam

Ponzi and High-Yield Scheme

Jurisdiction

United States / Australia / United Arab Emirates

First reported

Jun 2020

Last known activity

Dec 2022

How this operation works

HyperFund sold "memberships" that were said to pay passive rewards of between 0.5% and 1% per day until the member's initial outlay had been doubled or tripled. Prosecutors say those payments were claimed to come in part from large-scale crypto mining operations which, according to the Department of Justice, HyperFund did not have. The scheme was rebranded repeatedly as each iteration ran into trouble — HyperTech, HyperCapital, HyperVerse and HyperNation are all named in the charges as the same operation. The SEC announced charges on 29 January 2024 against co-founder Xue "Sam" Lee and promoter Brenda Chunga, who used the handle "Bitcoin Beautee". A DOJ indictment unsealed the same day charged Lee, an Australian citizen then resident in Dubai, in a scheme it put at $1.89 billion. The DOJ states that HyperFund raised over $1.7 billion worldwide before collapsing. Withdrawals were allegedly blocked from at least July 2021 onwards, while recruitment continued. Promoter Rodney Burton, known as "Bitcoin Rodney", was sentenced to 32 months' imprisonment in July 2026. Chunga pleaded guilty. The scheme operated through a multi-level marketing structure in which existing members earned commission for recruiting new ones, and was promoted heavily at in-person events and through social media.

Warning signs people reported

Fixed daily returns of 0.5% to 1% quoted as a guarantee
Returns attributed to crypto mining operations that prosecutors say did not exist
Repeated rebranding — the same operation relaunched under a series of new names
Withdrawals blocked while recruitment and new deposits continued
Commission paid for recruiting new members, so returns depended on new money
Promotional videos featuring a "CEO" who could not be independently identified

Other identifiers

Company registration

HyperTech Group (Claimed group entity)

What this operation claims about itself

Recorded as claimed. The licence check below is what we were able to verify.

Company name given: HyperTech Group
Regulator named: None named

Licence check

No licence on record

The SEC charged the memberships as unregistered securities offered by way of fraud. No licence or registration was held for the offering.

Official warnings

Have you lost money to this operation?

File a claim and we will assess what recovery routes are realistically open to you. We will tell you plainly if we do not think recovery is achievable.

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