The platform promised to be the next Uber Eats but focused on cryptocurrencies. It got promoted by influencers and even threw a party in London before it suddenly vanished from the internet.
Scammers only have an appetite for one thing: Easy and fast money. In the crypto world, this is not too different. Every week a new crypto-scam manages to fool less experienced investors and sometimes even the most influential people.
Crypto Eats, a startup that proclaimed itself the next stage among food delivery apps, disappeared after deceiving its users out of half a million dollars.
The fake platform, which gave away T-shirts, found support from influencers, and even threw a party before fizzling out, is possibly one of the most elaborate crypto fraud crimes in recent times.
Allegedly based in the UK, the platform promised to bring a home delivery service similar to UberEats with the difference that users would enjoy a feature that allows them to pay with cryptocurrencies. The project also included a native token, dubbed EATS.
An Overly Elaborate Scam
The company released a statement that seemed legitimate on which it announced the launch of its token and secured the backing of various investors. However, it all turned out to be a lie. After carrying out a first token sale, CryptoEats disappeared, stealing all the money from the investors. The VICE news outlet reported first.
Like other successful scams, the CryptoEats startup had many features that made it look like a real business. A press release claimed that the company had raised USD 8 million in a financing round. The ad also claimed deals with McDonald’s and other well-known restaurants.
The Yahoo Finance! Web portal and GlobeNewswire service, a tool for many legitimate technology companies to reveal press announcements, published the note regarding the scammer company. However, at the time of publishing, this statement has been deleted from both portals.
According to VICE, the startup guaranteed to focus on algorithm-based Blockchain implemented software, which also competed in parallel with popular services like Uber Eats and Delivaroo.
The platform had a web portal and its proper social media accounts, like all 21st-century businesses, and it mentioned a supposed chairman named Wade Phillips.
CryptoEats also claimed that it would have hundreds of restaurants to choose from and promised rare features, such as the ability for users to order items from different restaurants in one order.
The promises included the delivery of coffee in five minutes, a pension contribution to potential workers, and even a juicy salary.
Influencers Promoted Crypto Eats
The application managed to get promoted by many influencers. DJ Charlie Sloth, who has a million followers on Instagram, also got to promote the company and its app, according to VICE.
Also, the tiktoker and personal trainer, hstikkytokky, recommended the company and spoke to his 387,000 followers about the token.
Joey Essex, a TV show celebrity, also promoted the scam. Most of the influencers have taken to social media to offer their apologies for the situation. None of the reports revealed how much money influencers got paid to post the promotional content.
By: Jenson Nuñez
