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Draft:Centra Tech

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Centra Tech, Inc. is a defunct blockchain-based business that purported to develop a debit card capable of spending cryptocurrencies in real-time without having to go through a digital cryptocurrency exchange.

The company faked business relationships with The Bancorp and Visa, and received endorsements from Floyd Mayweather Jr. and DJ Khaled.[1]

Its founders were found guilty of securities fraud.

History

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Centra Tech was founded by Sam Sharma, Raymond Trapani and Robert Farkas in Miami, Florida, in 2017.[2]

Criminal trial

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Sam Sharma was sentenced to eight years in prison for conducting an illegal initial coin offering.[3]

In pop culture

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The story of Centra Tech and the resulting criminal investigation into its co-founders was dramatized by Netflix in their 2024 film Bitconned.[4][5]

References

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  1. ^ Popper, Nathaniel (October 27, 2017). "How Floyd Mayweather Helped Two Young Guys From Miami Get Rich". The New York Times.
  2. ^ Henning, Peter J. (September 18, 2018). "The Taming of Initial Coin Offerings". The New York Times.
  3. ^ Akhtar, Tanzeel (March 5, 2021). "Centra Tech Co-Founder Gets 8 Years for Crypto Fraud". Yahoo! Finance.
  4. ^ Conklin, Audrey (28 December 2023). "Most infamous cryptocurrency fraud schemes of all time". Fox Business.
  5. ^ Serba, John (January 2, 2024). "'Bitconned' Netflix Review: Stream It Or Skip It?". Decider. New York Post.