New York seeks $1.37 billion from NovaTech founders after fleeing the US

State demands repayment from absent founders

New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking over $1.3 billion from the founders of NovaTech. The state alleges the company operated an illegal pyramid scheme using cryptocurrency. A court filing on Thursday detailed the financial damage caused by the operation.

The case involves founders Cynthia and Eddy Petion, who have reportedly left the United States. A default judgment was issued in August 2025 when the couple failed to respond to the original lawsuit. The New York Attorney General’s office is now moving to recover the stolen funds.

Key financial details from the filing

• The state seeks $1.13 billion in disgorgement (return of profits) and $232.5 million in interest, totaling nearly $1.37 billion.
• Records from CoinPayments show $1.16 billion in cryptocurrency was deposited into NovaTech’s wallet between August 2019 and May 2023.
• At least $134.5 million in withdrawals went to wallets linked to the Petion couple.
• Traders lost $18.19 million out of $25.99 million deposited with trading platform provider B2Broker.

What the Attorney General says

Letitia James stated that NovaTech and AWS Mining scammed thousands of New Yorkers. She noted that the schemes targeted immigrant and religious communities with promises of a better life. The AG claimed the victims were instead robbed of their life savings. The statement emphasized that the investments were presented as safe but were actually pyramid schemes.

Consequences for other promoters

Four other promoters involved in the case have reached a separate agreement. They will pay nearly $6 million to victims. Additionally, these individuals have been permanently barred from working in the securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency industries.

Sources

• The Block