Crypto
A Colorado pastor accused of pocketing $1.3 million in cryptocurrency scam says the Lord encouraged him to use funds for a home remodel
- A Colorado pastor and his wife are being accused of selling “practically worthless” crypto.
- Eli Regalado said many of the charges were true but insisted it was a result of his inexperience.
- Regalado also said the Lord told him to use investor funds to remodel his home.
A Colorado pastor facing civil fraud charges related to his cryptocurrency business admitted to pocketing $1.3 million but says he used part of it for a biblically ordained home remodel.
Eli Regalado and his wife, Kaitlyn Regalado, are being sued in Denver District Court by Colorado Securities Commissioner Tung Chan, who accused the couple of targeting Christians to invest in their cryptocurrency INDXcoin, despite it being “illiquid and practically worthless,” according to a press release from the Colorado Department of Regulatory agencies.
Local outlet BusinessDen first reported on the lawsuit on Thursday.
“We allege that Mr. Regalado took advantage of the trust and faith of his own Christian community and that he peddled outlandish promises of wealth to them when he sold them essentially worthless cryptocurrencies,” Chan said in a press release. “New coins and new exchanges are easy to create with open-source code. We want to remind consumers to be very skeptical.”
The lawsuit seeks to recoup losses that Chan claims investors incurred and have a constructive trust placed on the remodeled home — a court remedy for those found liable for unjust enrichment.
In a Friday response on the INDXcoin website, Regalado spoke about the lawsuit, saying that it was true that they had ‘sold a cryptocurrency with no clear exit,’ but stated that God directed him and that missteps were made due to inexperience. Regalado also noted that his goal was to get investors their money back.
“So the charges are that Kaitlyn and I pocketed $1.3 million, and I just want to come out and say that those charges are true,” Regalado said in his video address. “So there’s $1.3 million that’s been taken out of — I think it was a total of 3.4 million. But out of that 1.3, half a million dollars went to the IRS and a few $100,000 went to a home remodel that the Lord told us to do.”
The Regalados declined to comment to Business Insider.
A crypto investment better than heaven
Regalado operates the online Victorious Grace Church, which has no physical location. In August of 2022, he came to his congregation over a video call to deliver a message that the Lord instructed him to get into cryptocurrency, per court documents obtained by Business Insider. He and his wife founded INDXcoin and Kingdom Wealth Exchange — a platform to buy and sell crypto.
“It was last October ’21 that the Lord brought this cryptocurrency to me,” Regalado told his congregation over video broadcast, per court documents. “He said ‘take this to my people for a wealth transfer.’”
Chan writes in the complaint that Regalados sold nearly $3.4 million in crypto in 2022 and part of 2023. Per the complaint, the couple assured prospective investors that INDXcoin was “safer than other currencies.”
Chan writes in the lawsuit that around 30 million coins were in circulation, sold for $1.50 a coin, with the promise that each coin was worth at least $10. The Regalados had, at most, $30,000 backing the coins — far less than the $300 million worth of assets they should have had.
Regalado addressed why he valued the coins at 10 times the amount: The Lord told him to.
“If someone bought $1,000 worth of INDXcoin, we would basically give them an INDX amount of $10,000 — so 10x on top of it,” Regalado said. “And I’m like, ‘Where’s this liquidity gonna come from’ and the Lord says, ‘Trust me.’”
According to the complaint, Kingdom Wealth Exchange and INDXcoin were eventually shut down in November of 2023 because they did not have the liquidity available.
The Regalados assured investors worried about their money that it would soon come.
“Stay in INDXcoins…just take that word as gospel truth and execute on that word and do not worry about how the money’s going to happen. I really believe you’re going to see a miracle in very short order,” Regalado told investors in a video call, per the lawsuit.
However, the Regalados had pocketed at least $1.3 million in investor money to spend on luxury items, cosmetic dentistry procedures, an au pair, home renovations, and boat and snowmobile rentals, per financial records subpoenaed by Chan’s office. The couple also used investor funds to finance a Range Rover and pay off a loan on a Ford F-150.
According to court documents, an additional $290,000 was sent to their online church — of which the couple are the sole beneficiaries. The lawsuit claims the Regalados told investors they were sowing this money into charitable causes.
“Defendants have ensured that the investors will never recoup their funds because they took the investment money for their own benefit,” the lawsuit reads.
Judge David Goldberg, overseeing the civil case against the Regalados, ordered their bank accounts be frozen for 14 days and that the couple stop selling securities in the state while the case continues.
The couple has an upcoming hearing on January 29.
United Kingdom-based Blockchain.com Group Holdings Inc., a cryptocurrency exchange and wallet service, announced Thursday that it has filed confidentially for an initial public offering in the United States.
The details of the IPO remain undisclosed, with the number of shares or expected price range undetermined as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission reviews the application.
Founded in 2011, Blockchain.com began as a blockchain explorer, a type of analysis tool that allows visitors to view transactions on the global distributed ledger ecosystem and track them from their origin to their current state. As the company evolved, it became a cryptocurrency wallet and exchange, allowing users to buy, hold, sell and trade tokens on its platform.
A blockchain is a tamper-proof digital database, or ledger. It securely distributes recorded transactions between numerous nodes and cryptographically secures information about the activity without a central authority. This allows tracking financial activity similar to a bank, without the need for a middleman, and enables highly secure transactions that are almost impossible to change retroactively.
Blockchain.com describes itself as a leading infrastructure company with more than 95 million wallets created, facilitating more than $1.1 trillion in volume on its platform across over 20 products. These include consumer trading, wallet services, institutional products and blockchain data tools rather than a classic order-book exchange model.
This IPO filing follows blockchain and crypto leaders entering IPOs, including major firms such as stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group Inc., cryptocurrency exchange Gemini Space Station Inc. and digital asset platform Bullish Inc.
The IPO of Bullish set an interesting precedent as well, as the company arranged to receive $1.5 million in proceeds from the deal in stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency token that is pegged to another currency, such as the U.S. dollar. This represented the first time a cryptocurrency had been used as part of the payout for an IPO.
Cryptocurrency lending firm Figure Technology Solutions Inc. also filed for IPO last year.
However, it hasn’t all been roses for IPO filers in the crypto industry. Other leading firms, such as cryptocurrency exchange Payward Inc., known as Kraken, paused its IPO, and French crypto hardware wallet Ledger Inc. also delayed its IPO, citing volatile market conditions.
Image: Pixabay
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Key Takeaways
Japanese Market Entry With a Strong Lobby Push
Polymarket, the blockchain-based prediction market that hit its first $10 billion monthly trading volume in March 2026, is making a calculated push into one of Asia’s largest and most regulated financial markets. Bloomberg reported on May 22 that the company has appointed Mike Eidlin as its Japan representative and is preparing to lobby regulators and lawmakers for authorization to operate prediction markets locally, with approval targeted by 2030.
Polymarket sees Japan as a large, untapped opportunity given that the country has one of Asia’s most developed retail investor bases and a strong appetite for speculative trading products. Prediction markets, however, currently sit in a legal grey area in Japan (neither explicitly authorized nor outright banned), meaning any formal operation at scale would require either a new regulatory category or a legislative amendment.
Japan has long been a bellwether for crypto regulation in Asia. Following the 2014 collapse of Mt. Gox, it was among the first countries in the world to implement a formal licensing framework for crypto exchanges, requiring all platforms to register with the Financial Services Agency (FSA). And, while that framework has expanded steadily, it has not yet addressed prediction markets as a distinct product class.
Polymarket Bets on Japan After $10B Trading Month
The 2030 approval timeline is deliberate because Japan’s regulatory process is, by any measure, extremely meticulous, and any new product categories, especially those tied to decentralized finance ( DeFi) infrastructure and crypto-collateralized markets, typically require extended review periods (sometimes extending into years).
Polymarket’s decision to appoint a representative now and begin lobbying early signals that the company is treating Japan as a long-term institutional project rather than an opportunistic expansion.
The move follows a string of platform milestones that have significantly raised Polymarket’s profile recently. Earlier this year, it received Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) authorization to operate as a designated contract market (DCM) in the U.S., a milestone that allowed it to launch perpetual futures trading.
Subsequently, in April, it introduced Polymarket USD, a new stablecoin that replaced bridged USDC.e as its primary collateral, alongside a smart contract infrastructure upgrade that cut gas fees.
Behind these offerings, the platform drew 678,342 unique users in April alone, more than eight times the implied user base of rival Kalshi. It has also been in talks to raise $400 million at a $15 billion valuation, reflecting broader investor confidence in the prediction market sector’s commercial potential.
Crypto
New Cryptocurrency Pepeto Takes $10 Million as Solana Drops and Cardano Stays 92% Below Its Peak
The Senate Banking Committee passed the Clarity Act in a 15 to 9 vote, giving crypto its first real regulatory framework from Washington. Bitcoin jumped to $82,000 on the news before dropping to $77,800, but the new cryptocurrency pulling the most capital right now is not on any major exchange yet. Pepeto https://pepetocoin.com/ has collected more than $10 million in a presale led by the same person who created the original Pepe coin, and the approaching Binance listing is where early wallets plan to collect.
New Cryptocurrency Interest Grows as the Clarity Act Clears Its First Senate Hurdle
The Clarity Act passed the Senate Banking Committee on May 14 in a bipartisan 15 to 9 vote, according to CNBC, marking the first wide ranging crypto regulation bill to clear a Senate panel. Bitcoin hit $82,000 on the vote before inflation data sent it down to $77,800, triggering $580 million in liquidations across crypto, as CoinDesk reported. The new cryptocurrency space benefits because the bill splits oversight between the SEC and CFTC, which clears the fog that kept serious capital on the sidelines.
Where Regulation Meets the Presale Entry That SOL and ADA Cannot Match
Pepeto: The Trading Hub That Protects Capital While Large Caps Bleed
Speed decides everything in crypto, and a single candle can turn a winning position into a loss before most wallets notice. Tokens that climbed 10% on the Clarity Act vote gave it all back within hours when the inflation numbers landed. Wallets without the right tools to check what they are buying or move fast enough between chains end up watching others profit.
That exact gap is where Pepeto https://pepetocoin.com/ sits, and the trading hub fills it for every wallet that enters. This is not a project waiting to go live. Every tool runs today. Worried about a contract that could drain capital? The risk scorer reads the code and flags danger before a single token leaves. Need to transfer assets across chains without bridge fees? The cross chain bridge moves them at zero cost, so every dollar arrives whole.
The trading hub is shaped for speed and clarity at every level, and the cofounder behind the original Pepe coin built this from the ground up while SolidProof completed a full audit on every contract to make sure the money inside stays protected. Staking earns 172% APY while the listing draws closer.
Analysts project this new cryptocurrency at 100x to 300x from its presale entry of $0.0000001871, and that ceiling sits far above anything Solana or Cardano can offer from their current levels. More than $10 million in committed capital already sits in the presale, and the approaching Binance listing is what turns those positions into gains. That listing ends the presale permanently, and every day outside costs ground to the wallets already inside.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPX8yXeLk00
Solana (SOL)
SOL trades at $87.26 after dropping 5% in a single session following the inflation selloff, according to CoinMarketCap. Goldman Sachs exited its Solana ETF position in Q1 2026, and even with the Firedancer upgrade moving forward, the $293 peak sits 71% above current levels. That math gives roughly 3.5x, which makes SOL a recovery play but not the new cryptocurrency entry that changes a portfolio.
Cardano (ADA)
ADA sits at $0.25 with a market cap that has barely moved since early 2026, according to CoinMarketCap. The chain remains 92% off its $3.10 peak, and no DEX on Cardano competes with the volume top exchanges handle. Even a return to $1 delivers roughly 4x, which is steady recovery but cannot compete with the multiplier a presale entry offers.
The Verdict
The Clarity Act gives every new cryptocurrency a clearer path, and Bitcoin’s jump to $82,000 proved the market agrees. But the biggest returns never come from large caps that already ran. Analysts project Pepeto at 100x to 300x, and that number stays on the table while the presale remains open. Every cycle produces winners who entered during fear and collected during recovery, and the $10 million committed to Pepeto while the market dropped follows that same pattern. The Pepeto official website shows the window is still open, and the wallets entering now will be the ones everyone reads about when the listing hits.
Click To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The Presale: https://pepetocoin.com/
FAQs
Is a new cryptocurrency like Pepeto safe to enter?
SolidProof audited every contract and the same person who built the original Pepe coin leads this project. More than $10 million committed in a bearish market confirms the conviction behind it.
Which new cryptocurrency gains most from the Clarity Act?
Pepeto’s approaching Binance listing and working tools position it as the new cryptocurrency set to benefit most as clearer regulation pulls fresh capital into presales.
How does Pepeto compare to SOL and ADA for returns?
SOL offers roughly 3.5x to its peak and ADA about 4x from here. The Pepeto official website shows a presale entry where analysts project 100x to 300x returns from the current price.
Disclaimer:
The material presented here is for informational purposes only and does not represent financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments involve high levels of volatility and risk, including the potential loss of your initial investment. Always consult a licensed advisor or conduct independent research.
Contact: Dani Bonocci
Website: https://www.tokenwire.io
Phone: +971586738991
SOURCE: Pepeto
Press release distribution
This release was published on openPR.
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