The Central Bank recorded the growth of financial pyramids under the guise of online games – Kommersant

In Russia, the number of financial pyramids masquerading as economic online games has increased, said “Izvestia” at the Central Bank (CB). According to him, more than 22% of such projects promised users quick and easy earnings inside the game – in the “pay and win” format.

As clarified in the Central Bank, most of the pyramids are small anonymous projects with a short duration and a small amount of participation. Their organizers target offers based on the age and preferences of potential participants, and use social networks and instant messengers for promotion.

The Central Bank called the lack of a competitive element a feature of such projects. According to the regulator, the increase in the number of financial pyramids is associated “with the current economic situation and the interest of the population in additional earnings.” “More than 98% of fraudulent Internet projects are detected on average three to five days after the start of their active promotion in social networks,” the regulator added.

Now about 100 varieties of such games are known, said Grigory Osipov, director of investigations for the security service for crypto-currency assets SCHARD. “Users are enticed by a quick opportunity to earn money by taking part in a computer game – a business simulation. These are, for example, such projects as Golden Mines, Rich Birds, Plants vs Zombies Mining Farm and others. The creators of such applications assure that with investments of 2-5 thousand rubles. and the proper skills of a strategist, you can develop your gaming business and get real money with the possibility of withdrawing it,” he explained.

CB informedthat in the first half of the year the number of financial pyramids increased by 19% year-on-year, to 1139. About 70 criminal cases were initiated, more than 300 administrative ones. Access to over 5 thousand resources is limited. Nearly 60% of these projects accepted contributions in cryptocurrencies. The main growth came from short-term “pseudo-investment Internet projects”, including in instant messengers and social networks. Member of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank Mikhail Mamuta urged increase responsibility for illegal investment advice coming from bloggers and Telegram channels.

Laura Keffer