SEC Cracks Down on Unregistered Crypto Advisors Amid $11 Billion in Investment Losses

The SEC has charged seven entities in 2025 for defrauding retail investors of $14 million through fake crypto platforms using social media recruitment. The scam operations used fabricated trading dashboards and WhatsApp groups to extract funds from victims.

PedroVazPaulo's crypto investment lacks verifiable SEC or FINRA registration, with multiple domains carrying conflicting claims about services offered to investors. The absence of regulatory registration is the single most reliable indicator that further due diligence is needed before engaging with any advisor.

Investors can verify a crypto advisor's registration status using FINRA BrokerCheck and the SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure database. These databases provide access to Form ADV filings from registered investment advisors, which disclose fees, conflicts of interest, disciplinary history, and custodial arrangements.