But when co-founder Cotten died during a honeymoon in India, the money was seemingly lost forever. Netflix's 'Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King' explores the story of Gerald Cotten, founder and CEO of Canadian crypto exchange business QuadrigaCX, whose passed away unexpectedly in 2018. "[40][41], Ernst & Young found five Quadriga cold wallet addresses, but they were empty, containing no cryptocurrency since April 2018. Then the Ontario Securities Commission opened an investigation. Did he Die? [2], In January 2019 Ernst & Young reported that Quadriga did not have a bank account, but instead used third-party payment processors. The estate includes an airplane, a sailboat, a 2017 Lexus, and real estate in Nova Scotia and Kelowna, British Columbia. When Quadriga CEO Gerald Cotten died suddenly in 2018, the passcodes for his cryptocurrency exchange died with him. Cotten neglected to pass on the passwords to the accounts, and in 2019, when investigators tracked down Cotten's digital wallets, all the money was gone. "I couldn't get any sleep. , and found an affidavit from Robertson saying that she didnt understand how QuadrigaCX operatedeven though one of Robertsons companies later wired cash to some of Quadrigas customers. The sudden death of Gerald Cotten in December 2018 plunged the world of cryptocurrency into chaos. Gerald Cotten (born 11 May 1988)[14] lived in Belleville, Ontario before attending the Schulich School of Business at York University in Toronto. Indeed, QuadrigaCX launched just three months after sceptre put out a call to build a crypto exchange. (India is notorious for forging fake death certificates by paying people off). He graduated from York with a bachelor of business administration in 2010. His wife has said she was "upset and disappointed" to learn about the extent of the fraud at her husbands company, writing in a 2019 statement, she wasnt aware or involved in Gerrys trading activities, nor his appropriation of customer funds." A bitcoin mining operation in Saint Hyacinthe, Quebec. When Taylor Monahan, founder of MyCrypto, examined the exchanges cold wallets, she couldnt find the lost crypto. The media dragged Gerald Cotten's wife, Jennifer Robertson, into the spotlight after his mysterious death. But when co-founder Cotten died during a honeymoon in India, the money was seemingly lost forever. In December 2018, Cotten died during his honeymoon with his wife, Jennifer Robertson, in Jaipur, India. Mom 'stabs 3 of her kids to death and wounds 2 others in unsupervised visit', Daughter of murdered couple linked to Delphi case reveals paranoia, Serena Williams stepmom's debts continue to spiral amid crumbling home battle, Alex Murdaugh looks unrecognizable in new mugshot hours after sentencing, 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP. Cotten passed away from complications that arose from Crohns disease while on a honeymoon in Indiaapparently taking some $215 million of customer funds to the grave. Things began to sour, however, in 2018, when the price of Bitcoin collapsed. Supposedly, Cottens business associates didnt even know he was married. Indian authorities maintain that Cotten, whose body was repatriated to Nova Scotia for a small closed-casket funeral, died on Dec. 9, 2018, shortly after checking into a luxury hotel in Jaipur. Another "appears to have been used to receive Bitcoin from another cryptocurrency exchange account and subsequently transfer Bitcoin to the Quadriga hot wallet" on 3 December. Did Cotten fake his own death, investors began to ask, absconding to lands anew under a new name and a surgically rejigged face? Gerald Cotten, 30, died abruptly in December 2018 of complications relating to Crohn's disease while on honeymoon in Jaipur, India, with his wife, Jennifer Robertson. Gerald Cotten is allegedly meant to have died from Crohns disease after the exchange crashed. Gerald Cotten. Even today, some investors remain unconvinced that Cotten really is dead. More than three years after the sudden death of Quadriga CEO Gerald Cotten and the revelations that the company was a massive cryptocurrency scam, his widow, Jennifer Robertson, tells her side of the story.#Quadriga #GeraldCotten #BitcoinWatch The National live on YouTube Sunday-Friday at 9 p.m. ETSubscribe to The National: https://www.youtube.com/user/CBCTheNational?sub_confirmation=1Connect with The National online:Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/thenationalTwitter | https://twitter.com/CBCTheNationalInstagram | https://www.instagram.com/cbcthenationalMore from CBC News | https://www.cbc.ca/newsThe National is CBC's flagship nightly news program, featuring the day's top stories with in-depth and original journalism, with hosts Adrienne Arsenault and Andrew Chang in Toronto, Ian Hanomansing in Vancouver and the CBC's chief political correspondent, Rosemary Barton in Ottawa. The doctor, reported the Globe, initially diagnosed Cotten with little more than travelers diahrrea, but kept him in hospital just in case. I didnt know that Gerry was married, he says. Even after Cotten's death news, some people still believe that he is alive, and one of the main reasons is because of his mysterious death. On 10 December, a death certificate was issued by the local municipality as well as a "no objection certificate" from the police to return the body to Nova Scotia. Front Burner- Inside Canada's Crypto Mystery, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King, "Investigation of Quadriga cryptocurrency debacle turns up only $28 million in assets", "Nothing sinister about bitcoin company CEO's sudden death, friend says", "Troubled Bitcoin trader QuadrigaCX takes another bizarre turn", "Canada's largest cryptocurrency exchange Quadriga seeks creditor protection", "Bitcoin Accounts for 95% of Cryptocurrency Crime, Says Analyst", "Crypto-Exchange Says It Can't Pay Investors Because Its C.E.O. A computer issue wiped $14 million of Ethereum off the exchange. Quadriga Fintech Solutions was the owner and operator of QuadrigaCX, which was believed to be Canada's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Gerald Gerry Cotten is the founder of Canadian cryptocurrency exchange Quadriga Fintech Solutions and is at the helm of a groundbreaking investment scam that the Netflix documentary investigates. And who dies from Crohns disease at 24 years old? So what exactly happened to Cotten, and is he still alive somewhere sitting on a mountain of stolen crypto? Where was the rest of the money? Lawyers for customers of an insolvent cryptocurrency exchange have asked police to exhume the body of the companys founder, amid efforts to recover about $190m in Bitcoin which were locked in an online black hole after his death. One of the Globe reporters had a hunch that this was Gerry Cotten, and traced the account to another online den of thieves, BlackHatWorld. California (2) Massachusetts (1) Texas (2) Refine Your Search Results. The Globe and Mail reporters were on the case, and used photos to conclude that they were the same person. The documentary follows a group of Quadriga investors turned sleuths who dig into the suspicious death of Cotten and the millions of missing cryptocurrency they believe Cotten stole from them, according to a tweet from Netflix announcing the film. Premieres in 2022 pic.twitter.com/rP9iFJHkWm. https://bit.ly/3cAIH4j Newest Vid's https:. The Netflix documentary will follow investors-turned-investigators looking into theories on the founder's sudden death. Gerald Cotten is still alive (proof) I remember exactly 2 and a half weeks ago, someone on this subreddit that was jokingly talking about gerald said "Watch Quadriga say that they can't access cold wallets because Gerald died and he was the only one with access to the keys". name was not the same as Robertsons ex-husband, some angry investors lobbed death threats at Jennifer, convinced that she had murdered Cotten, too. The teen, a bright computer enthusiast from Belleville, Ontario, ran the operation on an online forum called TalkGold . He was one of the wealthiest people in the crypto world, and his company was at its pinnacle. Netflix has tried to get to the bottom of things in its new 90-minute doc; read on to uncover the wild tale of Gerald Cotten. It was alleged that Patryn was involved in a money-laundering ring under a different nameOmar Dhanani. Gerald Cotten is a bitcoin millionaire from Canada whose death, supposedly from complications relating to Crohn's disease, is now being questioned. Stay up to date with what you want to know. Some speculate that Cotten, who suffered with Crohn's disease, might actually be alive. The circumstances are dodgy that they chose to honeymoon to India and he suddenly dies from complications of Crohn's disease. Some 76,000 investors like Zou collectively lost out. Email us at tech@the-sun.co.uk, Ring removes free perks for millions of users, you'll have pay to get them back, Android users told check for five Google 'danger phrases' don't ignore list, Facebook's hidden list reveals if you're a 'target' for criminals, People are just realizing Apple upgraded the iPhone with 7 life-changing secrets, 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, Tong Zou tells his devastating story in new Netflix doc, Gerald 'Gerry' Cotten died in 2018, taking password to access funds with him. While Robertson has possession of the laptop containing the necessary passwords, she remains locked out. Robertson has denied any knowledge of her husband's wrongdoing - and in 2019 returned $9million to the company to repay users. And, wildly, was Jennifer, his wife, even. After some more digging, the reporter found an order form filled out by one Gerald Cotten. A C$24.7 million disbursement fund has been planned with C$300,000 to go to Cotten's widow, Jennifer Robertson, who advanced that amount to start the court proceedings; C$200,000 will go to Ernst & Young and another C$250,000 to its lawyers; C$229,842 will go to Quadriga's lawyers; and C$17,000 to independent contractors. Cotten passed away from complications that arose from Crohns disease while on a honeymoon in Indiaapparently taking some $215 million of customer funds to the grave. Subsequent investigations found that Michael Patryn, one of the co-founders, registered the domain name for QuadrigaCXnot Gerry. Still, questions about the missing money only mounted when two Globe and Mail reporters followed up on the case. She says she never received the passwords. [16] In 2014 only C$7.4 million worth of bitcoin were exchanged on Quadriga. Both Canadas tax authorities and the FBI are also investigating the company. There was no autopsy on the body, for instance, and Cotten had signed his will two weeks after he diedleaving his riches to Jennifer. Image Credit: CTV Your Morning/YouTube. Customers reported that once they arrived, there was nobody in the office, or that there was no cash to be disbursed. [32] It also stated that Quadriga has 363,000 registered users and a sum of C$250 million is owed to 115,000 affected users. At the time, he was the CEO of QuadrigaCX, a company that performed cryptocurrency exchanges. [17] In a 2014 interview, founder Gerald Cotten explained that the company stored customer funds on paper wallets in safe deposit boxes: "So we just send money to them, we dont need to go back to the bank every time we want to put money into it. Angry and suspicious investors congregated on Reddit and Telegram to try to get to the bottom of the mystery. In January 2014 they installed the second Bitcoin ATM in Vancouver. Like many in the industry, he framed his enterprise not merely as a financial tool, but a radical societal change, touting the crypto gospel in podcast appearances and videos on YouTube. Gerald 'Gerry' Cotten died in 2018, taking password to access funds with him Credit: Netflix. #GeraldCotten #QuadrigaCX #Netflix #truecrime #wherearetheynow #gerrycotten #crypto #fraud #docuseries #truestory #biography #whathappenedto ------------------------------------IN THIS VIDEO:Sierra Walker ------------------------------------PRODUCER \u0026 FILMED BY:Chris Stiuso------------------------------------VIDEO EDITED BY:Brianna Raakman: https://www.instagram.com/brianna_raakman/ Then Cotten took a turn for the worse: he went into cardiac arrest three times; the third time, the doctors couldnt revive him and declared him dead. However, in 2018, Bitcoin prices crashed and many began withdrawing their funds from Quadriga, except they were being met with error messages before the exchanges website stopped working in 2019. [3][4][5], Quadriga likely never invested the funds entrusted to it, according to Chainalysis, a cryptocurrency tracking firm. "At that time, there was nothing I could do. [7][8] On 8 April 2019 the firm entered bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act as the possibility of a successful reorganization appeared to be remote. Was he avoiding something or someone? All Filters. The circumstances sparked speculation from some in the crypto community that the CEO faked his death and stole his clients' money. And meanwhile, Dead Man's Switch director Sheona McDonald said: "There's only two people who really know what happened in India.". When Canadian blockchain whiz Gerald Cotten died unexpectedly last year, hundreds of millions of dollars in investor funds vanished into the crypto ether. Business picked up when Bitcoin hit the big time in 2017, reaching prices close to $20,000. NOW WATCH: Netflix is headed for a huge profit milestone in 2018, Personal Finance Insider's picks for best cryptocurrency exchanges. In her memoir, Ms Robertson denies shes part of an elaborate plot to fake her husbands death, adding that speculation has led to death threats from stalkers demanding she returns the missing millions. At this point, lots of investors think that Cotten, a man alleged to have a history of scamming, really had faked his own death. Following Quadrigas implosion in 2019, it was investigated by the Ontario Securities Commission, which concluded that, "what happened at Quadriga was an old-fashioned fraud wrapped in modern technology. [17] In June 2017, Quadriga announced that they had lost ethereum worth US$14 million due to a smart contract error. And not even he thinks that Gerald is deadnor did he ever meet his wife. The Crypto King, aka Gerald "Gerry" Cotten, died in 2018, but his mysterious death is still a subject of controversy today. Still, all this evidence was circumstantialinvestors hadnt yet found a smoking gun. Was, whom employees described as a macho, terrifying character, that Patryn was involved in a money-laundering ring under a different name, Then, out of the blue, one Mike Patryn joined the Telegram group that investors were using to discuss conspiracies. His body was repatriated to . "[18], The company tried to raise money and list on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) working with Patryn. The firm launched in 2014 amid a spectacular rise in the price of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, and was handling $1 billion in trades by 2017. I personally believe that Cotten is not dead but I would like to hear from people who know more than me about this topic and what they think about the situation. Conspiracy theorists insist that Cotten faked his own death, however, as many irregularities surrounding his death began to circulate, including a copy of his misspelled death certificate and the fact that his funeral had a closed casket. Netflix announced an upcoming documentary about the Quadriga Bitcoin saga and the death of CEO Gerald Cotten. Then, as their accounts accumulated hundreds of millions of dollars, Gerald passed unexpectedly, taking the passwords to the accounts to his grave. Then Gerald Cotten suddenly died, in December of 2018, from complications with Crohn's disease. Despite no concrete evidenceindeed, the murdered mans first name was not the same as Robertsons ex-husband, some angry investors lobbed death threats at Jennifer, convinced that she had murdered Cotten, too. Overcast with rain showers at times. [42] Another three empty wallets were believed to possibly be owned by Quadriga. Further complicating the matter the company's co-founder Michael Patryn was revealed to actually be a man named Omar Dhanani, who had previously been convicted in the US of identity fraud. Now . Sign up for our newsletter for the latest tech news and scoops delivered daily to your inbox. Quadriga started by doing only local trades. The only catch: only Gerry knew the passwords to the companys crypto-vaults. [1], The company's CEO and founder, Gerald William Cotten, allegedly died in 2018 after traveling to India. Lived In Los Angeles CA, Austin TX, Van Nuys CA . Was the CEOknown for his luxurious lifestyle, which included jets, supercars and vacationsmurdered by a mob debt collector or a jealous lover? 'Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King' will be released sometime in 2022. She has also said she has no idea what the passwords are to access sequestered customer funds, and that it wasnt written down anywhere. Bankruptcy trustees have managed to recover around $34million from Quadriga and $12million in assests from Cotten's estate - but the rest remains locked away in the digital world of crypto. The company's CEO and founder, Gerald William Cotten, allegedly died in 2018 after traveling to India. The doctor stated that while dying from Crohns disease is very rare, Cotten appeared to show signs of illness and suffered from three heart attacks in the same day the paramedics were unable to resuscitate him after his third cardiac arrest. There's also other posts on his Murdoch1337 account that are weird he asks for people to sell him old reddit accounts presumably because he would use these alt accounts to downvote people trying to slander his company or he would make posts on these alts saying how great Quadriga is. Sam, Bangs & Moonshine by Evaline Ness (Holt). Gerald Cotten is allegedly meant to have died from Crohn's disease after the exchange crashed. Attack on Titan Season 4 Part 4 to release Fall 2023, confirms new trailer, {{#media.media_details}} {{#media.focal_point}}. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. And with the mystery of Quadriga still being unraveled by the Feds, Mounties, amateur sleuths and investigative journalists - the question remains what happened to Cotten? Gerald and Jennifer kept most of their relationship away from the public. Photo by Gaetano Cessati on Unsplash. Furious investors continue to fight a legal battle to try and have Cotten's body exhumed as they believe his death was a cut and run scam. The OSC found that after 2016, QuadrigaCX stopped producing consistent data about its holdings, and that large volumes of cryptocurrencies were being sent to foreign crypto exchanges. He was 30-years-old. Check out: Personal Finance Insider's picks for best cryptocurrency exchanges. But when the banks, the law, and the. The death, and the resulting collapse of Quadriga, set off a score of government and citizen investigations into how so much digital currency could be spirited away. But Bitcoin crashed at the end of 2018, and Cottens flashy lifestyle needed cash to sustain itself. I didnt know that Gerry was married, he says. #GeraldCottenReallyDead #GeraldCottenStillAliveGerald Cotten Really Dead ? There is a clear lesson here that having a single person owning this information creates a huge vulnerability.. A new Netflix true-crime documentary is tackling a bizarre story from the world of cryptocurrency. lets break it all down. I ended up losing my life savings I lost $400,000, Tong Zou, a tech worker quoted in the film, says. Investigations into the firm revealed that Mr Cotten made numerous fake accounts on Quadriga to influence trades on the platform, at one time being involved personally in 87 per cent of transactions. Re-thinking indemnification for smart contract risks", "Bitcoin investors face long delays cashing out, criticize two B.C. Many believe that Cotten faked his death, however, as part of an exit scam to get away with. The thing about conspiracy theories, though, is that they mutate out of control very quickly, and arent always reflective of the latest evidence. He is believed to have carried out Ponzi scheme scams since he was just 15 - such as playing a role in pre-crypto digital token eGold, according to investigator Amy Castor. Given the mysterious circumstances of his deathand the enormous amount of money he controlledits no surprise that conspiracies quickly sprang up in an attempt to piece together the puzzles around his death. Still, all this evidence was circumstantialinvestors hadnt yet found a smoking gun. Despite presenting himself as mild mannered and clean cut, Cotten was found to have had a history of carrying out financial cons - starting when he was just a teenager. More than three years after the sudden death of Quadriga CEO Gerald Cotten and the revelations that the company was a massive cryptocurrency scam, his widow,. So the. On the 9th, he allegedly died after episodes of cardiac arrest. Evidence of him faking death: There's lots of bizaare things that are suspicious. 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