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New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking about $1.37 billion from Cynthia and Eddy Petion, founders of the collapsed crypto trading platform NovaTech, according to a filing in New York County Supreme Court on Thursday reported by Decrypt on 2026-08-19. The request follows an August 2025 default judgment issued after the couple fled the U.S. and failed to respond to the state's lawsuit. James also announced settlements totaling nearly $6 million with four top promoters, who are permanently barred from the securities, commodities and crypto industries. The scheme targeted Haitian communities through prayer groups and WhatsApp and drew more than 11,000 New York investors, the report states.

Background

Decrypt reports that James first sued NovaTech and AWS Mining in June 2024, alleging they defrauded investors of more than $1 billion. Two months later, the SEC charged the Petions and others over what it called a $650 million fraud. According to the attorney general's office, the Petions targeted immigrant communities, particularly Haitian New Yorkers, through prayer groups, social media and WhatsApp chats, using ads in Haitian Creole and religious messaging. More than 11,000 New Yorkers were among hundreds of thousands of investors worldwide. NovaTech falsely marketed itself as a registered hedge fund broker licensed to trade crypto in the U.S. and advertised returns of 2% to 4% a week, or more than 140% a year, according to the state. In reality, it sent just under $26 million to its trading provider between 2019 and 2023 and lost about $18.2 million of it. Weekly payouts and recruiting bonuses came from new investors' deposits, the state said. When NovaTech collapsed in 2023, tens of thousands of investors couldn't withdraw their funds. Before NovaTech, the Petions were top U.S. promoters of AWS Mining, which promised monthly returns of 15% to 20% from crypto mining before collapsing in 2019. Cynthia Petion admitted in a WhatsApp chat to making at least $3 million from that scheme, according to the filing.

What happened

According to Decrypt's reporting, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed in New York County Supreme Court on Thursday asking a judge to order Cynthia and Eddy Petion, NovaTech and related companies to pay about $1.37 billion in damages, disgorgement and interest. The request follows an August 2025 default judgment issued after the Petions fled the U.S. and failed to respond to the state's lawsuit; that judgment also banned them from the securities, commodities and crypto industries. James also announced settlements totaling nearly $6 million with four top promoters: Martin Zizi, Frantz Ciceron, Ricardo Roy Sr. and James Corbett. They will pay the money to benefit victims and are permanently barred from those industries. The report states that data from payment processor CoinPayments shows investors deposited roughly $1.16 billion in crypto into NovaTech's wallet between August 2019 and May 2023, and Cynthia Petion was the only authorized user on the account. At least $134.5 million went to wallets belonging to the Petions. After subtracting the money sent for trading, the state is seeking about $1.13 billion in disgorgement, plus $232 million in interest. James said in a statement: "These scammers targeted immigrant and religious communities with the promise of a better life but instead robbed them of their life savings." The report notes the couple has fled the country, according to James, raising questions about collection.

Market impact

The sources provide no market prices, trading volumes or flows beyond the NovaTech case figures. Decrypt reports that investors deposited roughly $1.16 billion in crypto into NovaTech's wallet between August 2019 and May 2023, per CoinPayments data, and that at least $134.5 million went to wallets belonging to the Petions. The state is seeking about $1.13 billion in disgorgement plus $232 million in interest, within a total request of about $1.37 billion. NovaTech sent just under $26 million to its trading provider between 2019 and 2023 and lost about $18.2 million of it, according to the state. The attorney general's office says more than 11,000 New Yorkers were among hundreds of thousands of investors worldwide. The four promoter settlements total nearly $6 million. The report also notes that the SEC charged the Petions and others over what it called a $650 million fraud, and that James's June 2024 lawsuit alleged investors were defrauded of more than $1 billion. No broader crypto market impact is described in the source.

Why it matters

Decrypt's report supports several consequences. First, the scale of the requested relief, about $1.37 billion, signals that state authorities are pursuing large monetary judgments even when defendants have fled, as the report states the Petions did. Second, the permanent industry bans on the Petions and the four promoters, along with nearly $6 million in promoter settlements, show that enforcers are extending liability beyond founders to recruiters. Third, the case highlights how crypto fraud can target immigrant and religious communities through prayer groups, WhatsApp and Haitian Creole advertising, with more than 11,000 New York investors affected. Fourth, the report's account of NovaTech's marketing, including claims of being a registered hedge fund broker and advertised weekly returns of 2% to 4%, illustrates the type of misrepresentation regulators are challenging. Finally, the collection question remains open: the report notes the couple has fled the country, so whether victims recover funds is uncertain. The source does not describe any market-wide consequences.