Share this article
German Finance Watchdog Shutters OneCoin Payment Processor
Germany’s top finance regulator has moved to shut down a payment processor tied to the OneCoin cryptocurrency scheme.
By Stan Higgins
Updated Sep 11, 2021, 1:14 p.m. Published Apr 18, 2017, 1:00 p.m.
Germany's top finance regulator has moved to shut down a payment processor tied to to the OneCoin cryptocurrency scheme, a digital currency service that has faced widespread allegations of fraud.
The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) said on 10th April that it was freezing the accounts of IMS International Marketing Services GmbH, which is registered in Germany.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
According to BaFin, the firm accepted €360m on behalf of OneCoin between December 2015 and December 2016. Of that amount, €29m is being held in the accounts frozen by the regulator.
The agency went on to threaten financial penalties in excess of €1m, going on to say:
"In case IMS should not abide by the order to cease business, BaFin threatened to impose a coercive fine of €1.5m; for non-compliance with the winding-down order, it would impose a coercive fine of €150,000. By law, the administrative acts, including the threats of coercive fines, are immediately enforceable."
With the move, BaFin becomes the latest regulator in Europe to take action against elements of the OneCoin scheme.
OneCoin is a multi-level marketing scheme that pitches an eponymous digital currency as an investment opportunity. Prospective buyers purchase batches of tokens which can then be redeemed online, though those involved are strongly encouraged to find buyers of their own – a characteristic that lends itself to accusations that OneCoin is a pyramid scheme.
In the past year, regulators in several African countries have warned consumers about local efforts by OneCoin to solicit investors. In the UK, London police have been investigating OneCoin since as early as September, while in Italy, regulators moved last month to prohibit promotional efforts for OneCoin by local proponents.
Notably, BaFin made it clear in a statement that it was moving against the firm due to unlicensed money activities rather than the legality of sales of OneCoin tokens.
"BaFin does not have the right to decide as to the validity under civil law of the 'OneCoins' sales contracts. It may therefore not answer questions of this nature," the agency said.
Closed sign image via Shutterstock
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates 25 Basis Points, With Two Voting for Steady Policy
The anticipated move comes as policymakers are still operating without several key economic data releases that remain delayed or suspended due to the U.S. government shutdown.
What to know:
- As expected, the Federal Reserve trimmed its benchmark fed funds rate range by 25 basis points on Wednesday afternoon.
- Today's cut is notable given the unusually large amount of public dissension among Fed members for further monetary ease.
- Two Fed members dissented from the rate cut, preferring instead to hold rates steady, while one member voted for a 50 basis point rate cut.
Top Stories
