SingularityEX Computing Power Scheme: Referral-based Ponzi, suspected shell company collapsed within three months

Who Gets Targeted

Victims are primarily young people with fragmented knowledge of AI and blockchain, crypto novices, stay-at-home parents, and retirees. Most are lured by the pitch of 'AI computing power leasing + daily token returns + referral-based loss avoidance,' hoping to beat inflation with investments ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands of yuan, without understanding the source of the returns. Project operators manufacture authority using screenshots of payments and fake Singaporean company registration certificates. Once invested, victims are trapped by 'sunk cost fallacy' and the 'temptation of high commissions,' leading them to recruit friends and family, only to find their principal unwithdrawable and themselves facing potential legal risks for pyramid scheme involvement.

骗局怎么运作

• Packaging identity as a 'Singapore-registered tech company.' Operators distribute white papers on Telegram and investment research groups, claiming SingularityEX is a Singapore-registered AI computing power trading platform where investors earn daily USDT returns. The pitch emphasizes 'regulated by Singapore law, funds are safely held in custody,' but they fail to provide an ACRA registration number or financial license, offering only a blurry business license photo to discourage verification.
• Setting up 'KYC-for-tokens + free-to-play' entry points. New users download an app or access a web portal, complete KYC, and link a wallet to receive small amounts of tokens, along with tasks like AI computing power check-ins. The pitch is 'participate for free, earn without investing,' drawing users into groups. Once users see withdrawal screenshots, they suffer from FOMO and transition from free participation to small deposits.
• Turning users into promoters via tiered commissions. The platform uses 'shared computing power' to set up direct referral bonuses, team performance bonuses, and 8-level commissions, requiring a minimum amount for withdrawals. The pitch: 'Computing power pays dividends; the bigger the circle, the more everyone earns.' In reality, commissions come entirely from the principal of new entrants, unrelated to actual computing power trading. Users recruit friends to meet team targets, forming a pyramid structure that feeds new capital into the platform.
• Instant small withdrawals to create an illusion of profitability. When users invest $300-$500, the platform usually pays out quickly to build trust. Meanwhile, the backend manipulates returns to show a constantly rising computing power curve. Once users deposit large sums, the platform delays withdrawals citing 'system upgrades,' 'USDT chain congestion,' or 'required security deposits,' buying time to shut down and run.
• Shutting down after about three months and relaunching under a new name. When new capital is insufficient to cover withdrawals, the platform disables deposits/withdrawals, dissolves groups, removes promotional materials, and leaves the website inaccessible. Operators move USDT through mixers and use the same source code to launch a new domain and brand, creating a cycle of 'collapse-rebrand-relaunch'.

红旗信号（看到这些快跑）

• 🚩 The platform cannot provide a registration number or financial license verifiable on the ACRA website, offering only screenshots, videos, or verbal assurances. Searching by company name yields no results or reveals discrepancies between the registrant/directors and the promotional claims.
• 🚩 Promises of fixed high returns and guaranteed AI computing power without credible audits, open-source code, or real computing power contracts. The return curve is generated by the backend and cannot be verified by users.
• 🚩 Team compensation exceeds three levels: direct referral bonuses, management bonuses, and peer bonuses are numerous, with the pitch emphasizing 'referral commissions' rather than 'purchasing computing power services.'
• 🚩 Deposit channels are limited to USDT or private payment codes. The platform lacks corporate accounts or tax records, and customer service staff use aliases without providing employee IDs or office addresses.
• 🚩 When withdrawals are delayed due to 'system maintenance,' 'chain congestion,' or 'KYC audits,' customer service simultaneously invites users to a new project to 'transfer' assets, a classic sign of a secondary harvest.
• 🚩 Community groups are permanently muted or allow only customer service to speak. Skeptics are kicked out immediately, and the group is filled with screenshots of bulk purchases, profit displays, and countdown timers to create urgency.

真实案例

• BuyerEx: Analysis by anti-fraud platforms revealed the exchange used KYC-for-tokens, AI-themed check-ins, and 8-level commissions to attract 'free' users. After two months, withdrawal channels narrowed, confirming it as a typical Ponzi scheme.
• StellarEX (AI Lobster Quant): Insiders revealed the 'Lobster AI quant model' was fake, with trading curves hand-drawn and backend returns easily manipulated. This confirms that AI quant scenarios are merely a glamorous shell for Ponzi schemes.
• Hezhong Yuanjing TGG-X: Reports confirmed the platform collapsed after absorbing funds with a 155% annualized AI illusion. Police have opened an investigation, marking a case where an AI Ponzi scheme led to criminal prosecution.
• Microex: Reports indicate the platform collapsed, trapping 300,000 people with billions in losses, then guided users to 'transfer' to another exchange—a common tactic for secondary harvesting.
• In January 2024, the U.S. SEC charged the operators of the crypto pyramid scheme HyperFund with raising over $1.7 billion from global investors. They promised high returns from crypto mining, but had no real revenue sources. The scheme collapsed in 2022, and defendants have pleaded guilty. (Source: https://www.theblockbeats.info/flash/221436)
• In September 2023, the unlicensed Hong Kong virtual asset trading platform JPEX was warned by the SFC and referred to the police for suspected conspiracy to defraud. By the 20th, police had received 2,086 reports involving approximately HK$1.3 billion, with 11 suspects arrested and large amounts of cash seized. (Source: https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/business-66873489)

Official Stance

• Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) — In August 2026, regarding 52 Singaporean citizens investigated in Guangxi, China, for suspected pyramid scheme involvement, the MFA stated: 'We have conducted three consular visits and respect the legal processes of the Chinese authorities.'
• Singapore Police Force (via Lianhe Zaobao) — On August 26, 2026, issued an annual anti-scam alert: Investment scams remain the top threat. A man in his 60s lost $70,000 of his retirement savings after being convinced by a woman he met online that 'mining' could generate profits.
• Guangxi Police, China — In August 2026, took compulsory measures against 52 Singaporean nationals suspected of pyramid scheme involvement. The MFA responded that they are being 'dealt with according to the law,' with further updates to be provided by the investigating authorities.

How to Protect Yourself

• ✅ Verify Singapore company registration numbers, directors, annual reports, and physical office addresses via the official ACRA website. Do not rely on screenshots provided by the platform; if you cannot find the information or it doesn't match, stay away.
• ✅ Do not participate in any project involving referral commissions or multi-level team compensation; these are core indicators of Ponzi and pyramid schemes. Remember: if your returns come from the principal of others, the project will inevitably collapse.
• ✅ Do not participate in 'free-to-play' or 'KYC-for-tokens' tasks; your referral link is essentially helping the platform recruit others. It is better to miss out than to lose your entire principal and social credibility for small rebates.
• ✅ If you encounter withdrawal delays, immediately save backend screenshots, deposit/withdrawal records, customer service chats, and group announcements. Report them to local police or the National Anti-Fraud Center app, and warn those around you not to deposit more funds due to 'price reduction compensation' offers.