Thursday Nov 21, 2024
Thursday Nov 21, 2024
Friday, 21 April 2023 00:52 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Colombo Chief Magistrate Prasanna Alwis this week ordered eight investment accounts opened in the United States by the directors of OnmaxDT Ltd., an illegal Sri Lankan crypto Ponzi or pyramid scheme to be frozen immediately.
The directors had opened the accounts with US company Binance.com and invested Rs. 430 million for a period of six months.
Reportedly this is the first time a Sri Lankan court has issued an order to a financial company based in the United States.
The order was issued after the Criminal Inve-stigations Department (CID) revealed that the group of persons had invested over Rs. 430 million in eight accounts with Binance.com and requested the court to issue an order suspending any transactions of those accounts for six months.
Following the order, the CID told the courts the CEO of Binance.com will be informed of the decision via email.
Accounts under the titles of OnmaxDT Ltd (Sri Lanka), Onmax Ltd (Australia), two joint accounts under the names of Dhananjaya Gayan, Sampath Sandaruwan Lenaduwage, Saranga Randika Jayatissa and individual accounts belonging to Vikramapeli Gedera Chandrakanti and Kahadawa Arachchige Athula Indika Sampath will be frozen.
On 28 March the court also issued a travel ban on six directors of OnmaxDT Sampath Sandaruwan, Athula Indika Sampath, Gayashan Abeyratne, Madhuranga Prasanna, Saranga Randika, and Dhananjaya Jayan for their alleged involvement in a pyramid financial fraud of $ 100 million. On the day the magistrate also ordered the heads of in Bank of Ceylon, Central Finance, Nations Trust, Seylan Bank and People’s Trust banks to freeze 57 accounts owned by the suspects. Charges have been filed against the suspects under Section 83 of the Banking Act and Section 03 of the Money Laundering Act.
In March Central Bank of Sri Lanka made public that it received several complaints indicating that
entities conduct and/or have conducted scheme/s prohibited in terms of section 83C of the Banking Act No. 30 of 1988.
Therefore, the CBSL commenced investigations in terms of section 83C of the Banking Act, No. 30 of 1988 to ascertain whether the below three entities violate and/or have violated the provisions of section 83C of the Banking Act, No. 30 of 1988.
(i) Fast 3Cycle International (Pvt) Ltd (F3C)
(ii) Sport Chain App, Sports Chain ZS Society Sri Lanka
(iii) OnmaxDT
In relation to the examination conducted under Section 83C of the Banking Act, No 30 of 1988, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has determined that the above three entities and Directors, Founders and Promoters of the above three entities conduct and/or have conducted prohibited schemes in contravention to the provisions of section 83C of the said Act.
Accordingly, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka requested the Attorney General to consider instituting criminal proceedings in terms of the provisions of Section 83C of the Banking Act.
