A few weeks ago, a complaint received by the editorial office put us on alert for a scheme which, according to the anonymous whistleblower, was extorting Albanian citizens.
It is about the two platforms TXEX and XEUX. These two platforms are presented as cryptocurrency investment applications and are distributed on several social networks, the most important of which is Telegram. But what is it about more specifically? Sources for ZËRI indicate that the Albanian Police is investigating these platforms and their channels on Telegram and other networks.
Currently, the same sources indicate that the number of citizens who have downloaded this platform and invested money is almost 6 thousand. The two cities with the highest number of users are in Lushnje and Lezha. How does this modern pyramid scheme work?
The story begins with a conversation between acquaintances who have previously downloaded the platform and registered on it. The interested person seeks to invest money on these platforms that appear as cryptocurrency investment exchanges, but are in fact pirated sites that have no connection to real exchanges. These sites have an automatic robot installed which then carries out the investment for each of the game's subscribers.
But how can a farmer in Lushnje 'exchange' or break money from lek to the 'Ustd' unit used in TXEX and XEUX? For this, our sources indicate that the scheme involves a wide network of currency exchange points that convert money from physical dollars to a digital wallet with 'ustd'. Once the farmer's virtual wallet is filled with virtual currencies, he is free to invest.
There is a problem here, as in the Republic of Albania there is no currency exchange point licensed to carry out this activity in the field of cryptocurrencies.
"The licensing fee is very high and no one undertakes to pay it," said the source, adding that this activity is a criminal offense for all currency exchange points that perform it as a service to Albanian citizens.
Meanwhile, let's explain the scheme further. The citizen who has filled the digital wallet with "ustd" is free to start investing on the platform. For this, he is instructed in Telegram groups, as you can see in the following conversations that the ZËRI collaborator offered us to understand the scheme.
"Every day, at the same time, users receive a message from the robot commanded by the administrators. The content of the message has only two sentences 'sell or buy' at the corresponding time. The user must enter the platform at the same time and perform one of the commands. By pressing the command, the purchase or sale on the fictitious stock exchange is completed," the source added.
Buying and selling or investing on these platforms starts from a minimum of $800 to $10,000. These are the figures that range from TXEX and XEUX. What convinces citizens to join this pyramid scheme is the way it is created. Like all other pyramid firms, the beneficiaries receive money, through which their relatives are lured and security is created.
"I feel more sorry because they are introducing each other. Uncle's son to uncle's son or aunt's son to aunt (super scheme like Sudja). So the one who really attracts them wins back 1k dollars, but is encouraged to invite 5 others at least with a 5k investment that he sends to the Group. It makes economic sense, I believe," added another source for ZċRI, a person who has been inside these groups and has seen up close how they function.
So, the temporary profit that is distributed to the group members is actually the previous investment that their cousins and acquaintances have made.
Has the pyramid scheme reached its peak?
It seems not. This is also the reason why, so far, no official complaint has been filed with the Cybercrime Directorate. No citizen has come forward claiming to have been scammed by a platform.
Our source from the group investigating this scheme explains: This is because the scheme is not yet at its end. It is still spreading. 6 thousand users is not a lot for a scheme. The creators of such schemes choose to spread them, make them credible and the moment there are no more investors, they burst. In Albania in 1997, you may have forgotten, but the pyramid firms at that time lasted almost 3 years until the catastrophe erupted with the financial losses of citizens.
But in the meantime, something has happened to the platform. It has been suspended and from recent communications in the group, it is learned that users are now being asked for 400 USD to re-access the game. ZËRI learned that the scheme is so massive in Lushnje, where a bar has even opened with the name of the game as its logo and farmers are being approached to make purchases in the pyramid scheme.
Who is behind the scheme? It is suspected that the creator of this scheme is a Chinese citizen, but so far, it has been extremely difficult for Albanian authorities to identify him, due to the use of Telegram channels and the lack of visibility.
"In many cases, the 'boss' of the game does not appear. He greets the victims from time to time, intriguing them for more. The end of this story is known," the source concluded his explanation.
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