Ramil Ventura Palafox, CEO of Praetorian Group International, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday for operating a $200 million bitcoin Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 90,000 investors worldwide.
Palafox, a dual citizen of the U.S. and the Philippines, owned and operated Praetorian Group International (PGI) as its chairman, CEO, and primary promoter. He pleaded guilty last September to wire fraud and money laundering charges, as The Block reported.
From December 2019 to October 2021, Palafox told investors that his company conducted high-volume bitcoin trading and promised daily returns of 0.5% to 3%. However, the company did not trade bitcoin at a scale capable of producing those returns. Instead, Palafox used funds from new investors or from the victims themselves to pay promised returns to earlier participants, a textbook Ponzi scheme model.
More than 90,000 investors worldwide deposited over $201 million into PGI during that period, including at least $30.3 million in cash and 8,198 bitcoin then valued at roughly $171.5 million. Investors ultimately suffered losses of at least $62.7 million.
“Palafox maintained a PGI website and online portal that falsely displayed steady gains, misleading victims into believing their accounts were growing and secure,” the DOJ stated.
Palafox also used investor funds for personal luxuries, including roughly $3 million on 20 high-end vehicles, $329,000 on luxury hotel penthouses, more than $6 million on four homes in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, and another $3 million on designer clothing, watches, jewelry, and furnishings from retailers such as Gucci, Cartier, Rolex, and Hermès. He also transferred at least $800,000 in cash plus 100 BTC — worth $3.3 million at the time — to a family member.
As part of his plea agreement, Palafox agreed to pay $62.7 million in restitution. The DOJ statement noted that victims may be entitled to restitution payments through the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
© 2026 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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