Georgia Man Charged with $165 Million Crypto Ponzi Scheme
Edward Zimbardi, a 59-year-old man from Flowery Branch, Georgia, has been extradited to face charges related to a massive cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. The alleged scam targeted over 6,000 investors and resulted in losses exceeding $165 million.
Zimbardi pitched his investment program, called The Crypto Program, as a way to purchase online advertising packages with a guaranteed monthly return of 25%. However, instead of buying these packages, he allegedly lost millions betting on foreign currency, spent at least $10 million on personal expenses, and used new money to repay earlier investors.
The alleged scheme ran from June 2022 to August 2023. Zimbardi fled to Fiji in July 2025 after learning the FBI was investigating him, skipping his son's wedding in Virginia to avoid arrest. He was eventually escorted back to the US by investigators.