Scam Alert: Alleged Morgan Stanley Crypto Affiliate Turns Out to Be Fraud

The digital currency ecosystem is playing witness to a recent rugpull by Morgan DF Fintoch, an alleged cryptocurrency lending platform that claimed it has an affiliation with the American multinational banking giant, Morgan Stanley.

The rugpull was flagged by self-proclaimed crypto market sleuth ZachXBT, who noted that the company has conducted an exit scam worth as much as $31.3 million USDT on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC) protocol. According to ZachXBT, the team behind the exit scam bridged the liquidity on the protocol to multiple addresses on Tron/Ethereum, and people reported being unable to withdraw.

The team page on the Fintoch website names “Bobby Lambert” as the CEO when in reality he does not exist and is a paid actor.

Previously both the Singapore Government and Morgan Stanley issued warnings about this investment scheme. pic.twitter.com/SLxvOCPj1s

— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) May 23, 2023

The Morgan DF Fintoch exit scam is the latest the industry has seen following the reported attack on some PEPE holders with fake transactions. Morgan DF Fintoch sold a very enticing product to investors, noting that it can issue a 1% daily payout to all of its subscribers.

The platform's advertisement captured the hearts of many unsuspecting investors with the company naming Bobby Lambert as its chief executive officer. With the investigations conducted by ZachXBT, Bobby Lambert does not exist anywhere in the company, but rather is a paid actor.

Morgan Stanley denies association

In the wake of the pain the rugpull has caused its investors, Morgan Stanley has issued a statement denying both having any form of association with the company and being liable for any transactions conducted through the platform.

"Please note that Fintoch is using Morgan Stanley's trade name and/or Morgan Stanley's trademark or a variation thereof without authorization and we do not assume any responsibility for any transactions or results that may arise from the aforesaid platforms. Morgan Stanley does not have any affiliation or relationship with these platforms," the banking giant said in a statement.

Attacks on innocent investors shows how much of a tough stance regulators are taking with respect to curbing fraud in the industry. Events like this will only drive such crackdowns up, a reason industry leaders are advocating for clear rules of engagement to be issued.