'WallStreetBets-Crypto Pumps' Telegram Account Scammed More Than $2M In BNB And ETH - TCR

• The “WallStreetBets – Crypto Pumps” Telegram account scammed BNB tokens worth more than $2.1M.
• Offering a “pre-mine sale,” the account encouraged users to wire BNB or ETH to a digital wallet address and get WSB Finance tokens. 
• More than 3,451 BNB tokens were outsourced from the mentioned wallet on the same day.

Impersonating forum members from the subreddit, popular for helping fuel a rally in GameStop shares in January 2021, WallStreetBets or WSB (r/wallstreetbets), a Telegram cryptocurrency scam cheated Binance coins (BNB) worth more than $2 million out of its victims’ pockets. And that figure doesn’t even include the amount of Ether (ETH) scammed. 

An Ideal Setting For Scams

With the latest cryptocurrency boom and several altcoins yielding more than 1,000% daily gains, this was an ideal setting for fraud. Creating new tokens doesn’t require much, and given that the crypto crowd is already in awe of the surges, neither does convincing investors to buy-in. Put in a few words here and there, and leave the rest up to their FOMO; that’s what this individual or team of anonymous scammers did.

The Telegram Scam

A Telegram messaging service account named “WallStreetBets – Crypto Pumps” pretended to be linked to Reddit’s ‘discuss stock and options trading’ WSB platform, reported Bloomberg on Tuesday. Offering a chance to buy an all-new WSB Finance token before it gets listed on crypto exchanges, the imposter encouraged users to wire BNB or ETH tokens to a digital wallet to participate in this “pre-mine sale.” After that, one has to contact its Telegram “token bot” and receive WSB coins.

However, those coins never substantiated. Instead, the account rolled out a second message claiming an issue with the bot, and those who placed the first purchase must wire the same amount once again or risk losing their initial investment. 

Regrets And Funds Lost

Within hours, thousands of the Telegram scam victims voiced their regrets and tried to track the perpetrator, but to no avail. According to data from BscScan, more than 3,451 BNB tokens were outsourced from the scam-used wallet on the same day. At the current BNB price of $625, that accounts for more than $2.1 million, not including the ETH it received.

Scanning the same wallet through Etherscan shows an outtake of around 151.4 ETH tokens with a 6.3 balance; these 157.7 ETH tokens at the price of $3,381.26 equates to over $533,000.

Beware Of WSB Imposters

Just two weeks ago, WSB moderators posted a warning against offers using the forum’s name to attract an audience. Following the recent scam, the forum confirmed the Telegram account wasn’t affiliated with it; forum has now pinned the warning at the top.

And Binance has yet to make any comment.

The “WallStreetBets – Crypto Pumps” has now been deleted. In its last post, the swindler left a clue about the funds’ whereabouts. It read, “Buying lambo now.”