Recent reports indicate a troubling trend in the world of cryptocurrency, where unsuspecting individuals are falling victim to fraudulent enterprises. One striking example is a man from Florida who lost $860,000 after enrolling in a crypto trading school promising rapid profits that turned out to be a ruse. His investment quickly evaporated, leaving him in financial distress.
The Scheme Behind the Curtain
Investigations reveal that the scheme was orchestrated by an entity known as Alpha Stock Investment Training Center (ASITC), in conjunction with a phony exchange called CoinBridge. These organizations enlisted participants with the allure of legitimate courses on “signal trading,” while falsely claiming to have secured $10 million from nearly 600 unsuspecting investors.
This façade projected an image of credibility, yet no authentic trading exchange existed, and every transaction was conducted through the scammers’ fraudulent platform.
Florida man loses $860K to bogus Denver crypto school, lawsuit claims
— The Denver Post (@denverpost) June 21, 2025
The Allure of Quick Profits
As per court documents, instructor John Smith awarded a $500 “gift” to the victim, Brian Firestone, developing an initial sense of hope as that investment surged to $55,000 within a matter of weeks. This early windfall led Firestone to invest further.
In January, he sunk another $50,000 into the venture, only to witness his account balloon to $2 million. Overcome with optimism, he reached out to Smith, expressing disbelief about his astonishing returns.
Rising Stakes and Financial Blindness
As the allure of easy wealth beckoned, Firestone wired an additional $470,000 from his bank and secured a $330,000 loan from ASITC to fuel his trading. His account balance soared to an astonishing $24.5 million.
Feeling invincible, he believed he had discovered hidden strategies. However, this sense of security obscured the reality of his escalating financial risks and total lack of control over his investments.
The Dismal Collapse and Legal Response
The catastrophe struck on March 9, when a USDT trade encountered a glitch, freezing his account. “I can’t close it,” he texted Smith in panic. Within moments, his entire balance vanished as the platform drained his funds.
Now, he has filed a lawsuit against CoinBridge and ASITC in federal court, seeking restitution. Firestone intends to expose the individuals behind this deceitful operation, hoping to highlight the scale of the fraud.
His legal representation asserts that the training institute misled him at every turn, failing to disclose that they manipulated the trades and the associated signals.
Image sourced from Unsplash; chart data from TradingView
