Finiko
Russian Ponzi (2018–2021) that took in over $1.5B in BTC across ~800,000 deposits promising up to 30% monthly returns; founder Kirill Doronin arrested July 2021; trial of 10 organizers in Kazan still ongoing in 2026.
**Finiko** was a Kazan, Russia-based Ponzi scheme fronted by Instagram influencer **Kirill Doronin** with co-founders Zygmunt Zygmuntovich, Marat Sabirov, and Edward Sabirov. It promised monthly returns of up to 30 percent, accepted deposits in Bitcoin and Tether, and launched its own FNK token. Russian prosecutors date the criminal community to the **2018–2021** period; Chainalysis tracked its Bitcoin inflows from December 2019 until the July 2021 collapse, when withdrawals stopped.
Chainalysis found Finiko received **over $1.5 billion in Bitcoin across roughly 800,000 deposits**, mostly from victims in Russia and Ukraine — one of the largest documented crypto Ponzi schemes. Laundering included over $9M sent to Suex (the OTC broker later sanctioned by OFAC), ~$3.9M to mixers, and $34M through a cross-chain DeFi protocol. Loss figures conflict: Chainalysis's $1.5B reflects total Bitcoin inflows, whereas Russia's Interior Ministry tallied roughly 5 billion rubles (about $55–80M) in victim complaints, and the formal criminal case charges only ~209 million rubles in proven episodes involving 161 named victims.
Doronin was arrested in Kazan at the end of **July 2021**. The trial of Doronin and nine co-defendants for fraud and organizing a criminal community began in the Vakhitovsky District Court of Kazan on **24 June 2024** and, per hearings reported into **early 2026**, remains under way with no verdict; Doronin denies guilt. Network director **Lilia Nuriyeva** was sentenced in May 2024 (4.5 years, reduced with pre-trial detention credit), and on **14 August 2024** Tatarstan's Supreme Court upheld her conviction, affirming Finiko's designation as a criminal community. Co-founder **Edward Sabirov was extradited from the UAE to Russia on 10 December 2025**; co-founders Marat Sabirov and Zygmunt Zygmuntovich reportedly remain at large.
Sources: [Chainalysis 2021 scam report](https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/2021-crypto-scam-revenues/), [The Block](https://www.theblock.co/post/115858/russian-pyramid-scheme-netted-over-1-5-billion-in-bitcoin-throughout-eastern-europe-says-chainalysis), [Kommersant (Nuriyeva appeal)](https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/6892724), [ForkLog](https://forklog.com/en/co-founder-of-finiko-pyramid-extradited-from-uae-to-russia/), [BeInCrypto](https://beincrypto.com/finiko-crypto-ponzi-executive-sentenced/)
**Official action:** Russian prosecution: founder Doronin arrested Jul 2021; exec Nuriyeva convicted May 2024 (Finiko ruled a criminal community, upheld 14 Aug 2024); co-founder E. Sabirov extradited from UAE 10 Dec 2025; main Kazan trial of 10 defendants ongoing
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