Investors filed a federal class action against JPMorgan Chase, alleging the bank processed $253 million in suspicious transfers tied to Florida-based Goliath Ventures’ $328 million Ponzi scheme.
Goliath Ventures, formerly Gen-Z Venture Firm, promised investors monthly returns of around 4% (~48% annually) from supposed Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and USD Coin (USDC) liquidity pools that generated no real profits.
Why it matters:
- CEO Christopher Alexander Delgado was arrested on February 24, 2026, on wire fraud and money laundering charges, with prosecutors alleging the scheme defrauded over 2,000 investors between 2023 and 2026.
- Victims face steep recovery odds as seized assets were spent on luxury real estate, exotic vehicles, and private jet travel before collapse
- The lawsuit tests whether banks bear civil liability for Anti-Money Laundering (AML) failures when fraud runs through their accounts
- Investors who wired retirement funds to Goliath’s JPMorgan accounts assumed the bank’s Know Your Customer (KYC) safeguards provided a layer of protection
The details:
- Steele v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (Case No. 3:26-cv-02067) was filed March 10, 2026, in the Northern District of California
- The complaint alleges $253 million moved through Goliath’s Chase accounts in circular transfers lacking legitimate business purpose
- Investor funds were routed from JPMorgan accounts to Coinbase wallets, funding payouts to earlier investors
- Delgado faces up to 30 years if convicted; assets are frozen under a court-appointed receiver
The big picture:
- The DOJ criminal complaint names JPMorgan accounts as core infrastructure in a scheme operating for over two years undetected
- Large-scale crypto fraud increasingly routes through major US banks before reaching exchanges, putting AML obligations under regulatory scrutiny
- Parallel suits targeting Goliath’s former law firm Alston & Bird signal a broader push to hold professional enablers liable
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