Key Takeaways
- • SEC secured a $5.52 million financial penalty victory against NanoBit and four affiliated entities (Radiant Horizons Limited, Sweet Karma Fashion Inc., and Zhao Tropical Deli Inc.) following a "pig butchering" cryptocurrency fraud scheme operating between September 2023 and June 2024.
- • The scheme defrauded investors through false promises of high-return cryptocurrency ICOs while falsely claiming NanobitUS Securities was SEC-registered; no actual transactions occurred on the NanoBit platform, with over $2 million wired to Hong Kong bank accounts and hundreds of thousands in crypto assets misappropriated.
- • Court imposed permanent anti-fraud injunctions against all defendants, prohibiting future securities violations; two individuals, Jiajie Liu and Hua Zhao, were included in the judgment for failure to respond to the lawsuit.
- • Perpetrators used WhatsApp and other messaging applications to contact and gain victim trust before directing investors into the fraudulent platform, representing a targeted social engineering approach characteristic of "pig butchering" schemes targeting retail investors.
Summary
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission concluded enforcement action against NanoBit on June 29, 2026, securing a $5.52 million penalty following a final judgment from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The case targeted a sophisticated "pig butchering" cryptocurrency fraud scheme that operated between September 2023 and June 2024, defrauding multiple investors through coordinated misrepresentation and asset misappropriation.
The scheme's operational mechanics relied on social engineering tactics, with perpetrators using WhatsApp and comparable messaging platforms to establish rapport with victims before directing them toward fraudulent investment opportunities. NanoBit advertised fake cryptocurrency initial coin offerings that promised exceptionally high returns, while simultaneously misrepresenting NanobitUS Securities as an SEC-registered broker-dealer—a critical false claim designed to establish regulatory legitimacy. According to District Judge Sanket J. Bulsara's ruling, the NanoBit platform facilitated no legitimate transactions whatsoever; instead, investor capital was systematically diverted to scheme participants who transferred over $2 million to Hong Kong-based bank accounts and misappropriated hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency assets.
The final judgment extended beyond NanoBit itself, encompassing four affiliated entities: Radiant Horizons Limited, Sweet Karma Fashion Inc., and Zhao Tropical Deli Inc. The court also named two individuals—Jiajie Liu and Hua Zhao—as defendants based on their failure to respond to SEC litigation. The ruling imposed permanent injunctions barring all defendants from future violations of U.S. securities laws' anti-fraud provisions, effectively prohibiting them from engaging in securities-related activities going forward.
The scheme's operational mechanics relied on social engineering tactics, with perpetrators using WhatsApp and comparable messaging platforms to establish rapport with victims before directing them toward fraudulent investment opportunities. NanoBit advertised fake cryptocurrency initial coin offerings that promised exceptionally high returns, while simultaneously misrepresenting NanobitUS Securities as an SEC-registered broker-dealer—a critical false claim designed to establish regulatory legitimacy. According to District Judge Sanket J. Bulsara's ruling, the NanoBit platform facilitated no legitimate transactions whatsoever; instead, investor capital was systematically diverted to scheme participants who transferred over $2 million to Hong Kong-based bank accounts and misappropriated hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency assets.
The final judgment extended beyond NanoBit itself, encompassing four affiliated entities: Radiant Horizons Limited, Sweet Karma Fashion Inc., and Zhao Tropical Deli Inc. The court also named two individuals—Jiajie Liu and Hua Zhao—as defendants based on their failure to respond to SEC litigation. The ruling imposed permanent injunctions barring all defendants from future violations of U.S. securities laws' anti-fraud provisions, effectively prohibiting them from engaging in securities-related activities going forward.
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