NovaTech Founders Ordered to Pay $1.4 Billion Amid Fraud Case

New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed a request in the New York County Supreme Court for the founders of the defunct cryptocurrency trading platform, NovaTech, to pay approximately $1.4 billion. Cynthia and Eddy Petion, the couple behind NovaTech, are said to have left the United States, complicating the collection process.

Details of the Filing

In her recent court filing, dated Thursday, James’ office is seeking a monetary judgment that totals around $1.37 billion. This amount covers damages, disgorgement, and interest, linked to the fraudulent practices associated with NovaTech, which effectively ceased operations in 2023.

Background of Legal Action

This latest request follows a default judgment issued in August 2025. The judgment was the result of the Petions’ failure to respond to the lawsuit initiated by the state and subsequently led to a ban on their involvement in securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency sectors.

Settlements with Top Promoters

James announced earlier that settlements totaling nearly $6 million have been reached with several key promoters involved in the scheme, including Martin Zizi, Frantz Ciceron, Ricardo Roy Sr., and James Corbett. These individuals are also permanently barred from participating in related industries and their payments aim to aid victims of the fraud.

Allegations Against NovaTech

The Attorney General first brought allegations against NovaTech and AWS Mining in June 2024, asserting they deceived investors out of more than $1 billion. Two months later, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged the Petions and others, describing the operation as a $650 million fraud.

Targeting Vulnerable Communities

According to the Attorney General’s office, the Petions specifically targeted immigrant communities, with a focus on Haitian New Yorkers, using religious messaging and outreach through social media platforms and WhatsApp. This strategy reportedly reached over 11,000 New Yorkers among hundreds of thousands of global investors.

James stated, “These scammers targeted immigrant and religious communities with the promise of a better life but instead robbed them of their life savings.”

False Claims by NovaTech

The state alleges that NovaTech falsely portrayed itself as a registered hedge fund broker, promising investors returns between 2% to 4% weekly, equating to over 140% annually. However, data indicates that NovaTech allocated less than $26 million to its trading provider from 2019 to 2023, facing losses of approximately $18.2 million. The company relied on new investments to fund payouts, leading to its collapse and leaving tens of thousands of investors unable to retrieve their funds.

Financial Data and Losses

Data from CoinPayments, a payment processor, shows that investors deposited nearly $1.16 billion in cryptocurrency into NovaTech’s wallet between August 2019 and May 2023, with Cynthia Petion being the sole authorized user of the account. Evidence suggests that at least $134.5 million was transferred to wallets belonging to the Petions themselves. The state is pursuing about $1.13 billion in disgorgement, in addition to $232 million in interest based on its findings.

History with AWS Mining

Before founding NovaTech, the Petions were prominent promoters of AWS Mining, which made promises of monthly returns between 15% and 20% from crypto mining prior to its collapse in 2019. Cynthia Petion reportedly admitted to earning at least $3 million from that venture in a WhatsApp conversation, according to the legal filings.