HARARE, ZIMBABWE — When her sister fell ill with cancer two years ago, Bertha decided to take a chance. She invested money earmarked for her child’s school tuition in bitcoin through a company operating from central Harare. Her hope was to clear enough profit to pay for the hospital bills and eventually the tuition.
After an initial investment turned a profit of 9,700 Zimbabwean dollars (ZWL) (about $120), Bertha invested 162,000 ZWL ($2,000) in October 2020. “That was the beginning of a nightmare,” she says. The company vanished without paying investors.
Bertha, who asked to be referred to by her middle name due to fears of stigma, seems to have been swindled through one of myriad fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes. With the rise in popularity of these currencies and the underlying blockchain technology, scammers around the world are cashing in on the buzz with promises of easy and lofty profits.
Data from United States-based research firm Chainalysis shows that scammers earned $7.7 billion worth of cryptocurrencies from investors worldwide in 2021 — an 81% increase compared with 2020.
In Zimbabwe, inflation has depleted savings and pensions over the past decade, and a confusing stream of new currencies eroded faith in the banking sector. As a result, cryptocurrencies are particularly attractive in the country, despite much of the population understanding little of the associated risks.
