Carnelian12, an alleged Ponzi scheme, ceased investor withdrawals in late May, leaving affiliates without payments for over two weeks. The platform initially acknowledged these delays on May 28th. Investors attempting to access their funds encountered new restrictions, finding themselves unable to initiate fresh withdrawal requests while existing ones remained pending.
The platform issued a statement claiming "security measures" were in place due to "rapid expansion." Carnelian12 managers also pointed to perceived instability within the online investment industry, citing payout delays and technical issues reported by other "big actors." They explained that payment gate merchants, which handle fiscal infrastructure for many platforms, typically require Know Your Customer (KYC) verification, trading reports, and local licenses. Such partners also face limitations on high-volume daily operations.
Carnelian12 claimed that any sizable platform exceeding $1 million in daily transactions must follow company verification procedures to prevent funds from being put on hold. The platform admitted to accepting "well over $1M daily with absolutely zero KYC for our users" and stated its desire to maintain this practice. This lack of KYC is a hallmark of many unregulated investment schemes, allowing anonymous transactions and making it difficult for authorities to trace funds or identify participants.
The platform then announced "two essential steps" to resolve the issue. The first step involved a manual review of all payouts and restoration of compromised two-factor authentication or shared access. The second step entailed deploying a contract with a new partner to increase transaction bandwidth, with Carnelian12 claiming to have achieved a "stable bandwidth of $10M+ daily." Despite these assurances, investor withdrawals remained stuck in an "in work" status.
A second update followed on June 2nd. Carnelian12 attributed the "In Work" status to blockchain network speed, stating it could last "up to 12 hours" beyond the initial timer. The message urged investors to "respect the community" and avoid "double request[ing] an update" from client support. It also warned against "trouble minds or social media terrorists," threatening prosecution for "blackmailing attempts from bad actors." This language often surfaces from schemes facing investor panic, attempting to control information and discourage dissent.
On June 5th, Carnelian12 asserted it had "cleared up the 'in work' queue." The platform then promised that withdrawals would resume on Monday, June 12th. As this deadline approached, Carnelian12 credited affiliate backoffices with a 12% bonus. This compensatory reward was explained as a result of the team deploying "all forces to face the scaling," which required holding some operations and client support in a pending status. Such bonuses are a common tactic in collapsing Ponzi schemes, designed to placate investors and encourage them to leave their funds in the system, often buying time for the operators.
The promised June 12th resumption of withdrawals did not materialize. Investors continued to report non-payment, and the platform has offered no further updates on the status of funds. The lack of payment extends beyond two weeks, indicating the scheme's insolvency.