State issues cease-and-desist to halt suspected crypto pyramid scheme in Hawaii

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – State officials ordered BG Wealth Sharing and two women to stop soliciting investors, as federal investigators also move in on what some authorities describe as a cryptocurrency pyramid scheme.

BG Wealth Sharing has been operating in Hawaii with small initial investments, promises of wealth and incentives for recruiting new members, according to state regulators.

Joy Arcenas, who is from California, posted a video in January saying she was in Honolulu to do training for top leaders and members. Her Instagram includes posts of BG investment parties across the West, where people hear a story that started with $333.

“That $333 brought me to a level seven at $4,100 a day and now with $30,000 a month,” Arcenas said in the video.

Regulators said Arcenas also hosted Zoom webinars to help investors, many of whom appeared confused about cryptocurrency rules and how to cash in their investments.

Her internet posts indicate she hosted multiple meetings in Hawaii. A woman who emailed Hawaii News Now said the scheme is spreading in the Filipino American community across Hawaii and that a relative is influencing other members of her family, including an elderly mother, into investing.

The woman said many people lost their hard-earned money.

“It’s sad that something like this is actually continuing to happen,” said Randal Lee, a former judge and prosecutor.

Lee said it is not the first time pyramid schemes have targeted the Filipino community.

“You have to stop it immediately because it will grow like wildfire if you do not stop it,” Lee said.

State securities investment regulators served Arcenas, BG Wealth Sharing and a local woman named Cranci Ilima Luci Hoopai with a cease-and-desist order.

The order describes a meeting of 40 to 50 people at Nanakuli Library in April, where investigators said Arcenas claimed $500 was enough to earn benefits for a lifetime and people could be millionaires in 11 months if they worked hard to sign up and train new members.

Hoopai used testimonials from her own family to prove the investments were legitimate, according to the order.

“But the red flag should be that if you’re going to become a millionaire within 11 months, that’s totally unrealistic,” Lee said.

The order directs BG Wealth Sharing, Arcenas and Hoopai to stop soliciting investors. State regulators also ordered each to pay $50,000 for failing to register as securities brokers.

Federal authorities are also moving in on the mainland company. In recent days, the company’s website was seized under a federal warrant by the Department of Justice. There are also reports the company’s mainland bank accounts have been frozen.

“I love BG with all my might and protect BG with all your heart,” Arcenas said in a video.

Lee said investors who recruited friends and family are often warned by scammers that they could be prosecuted if they talk. He said that is not usually true. Investors who believed the scheme was legitimate would most likely be treated as victims.