The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has received a complaint from a California resident regarding a crypto investment scam.

The victim told DFPI he was scammed into transferring money to this online crypto trading company, after hearing about it from a person online. The victim transferred cryptocurrency to the company after the online scammer claimed he would teach the victim about cryptocurrency. The victim transferred funds into the site several times at the request of the scammer. At some point, the victim realized he could only deposit money into the account operated by the site, not make withdrawals. The company operates a website at https://www.golddiamondex.com/wap.

This appears to be what is commonly called an “Advance Fee scheme,” which can take many forms, as discussed here:  https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes/advance-fee-schemes

The DFPI urges consumers to exercise extreme caution before responding to any solicitation offering investment or financial services. To check whether an investment or financial service provider is licensed in California, consumers may contact the Department for questions or inquiries at ask.dfpi@dfpi.ca.gov or call toll-free at (866) 275-2677. If a consumer believes a person or company has violated state law or acted improperly regarding a consumer financial product or service, they may file a formal complaint with the DFPI at https://dfpi.ca.gov/file-a-complaint/.