In October 2025, a new Antares Trade recovery scam surfaced on AntaresTrade. Live, registered on September 18, 2025, promising up to 13% returns every 48 hours without an MLM component, per CoinDesk reports. This low-effort fraud uses a template website with stolen content and fictional executives, targeting victims of the original Antares Trade Ponzi run by Alexey Zhirovkin, per CryptoPotato. The scam appears unrelated to Zhirovkin, who was arrested in Turkey in May 2025 and deported to Russia, facing charges for Alcore Trade and other schemes, per Reuters. X posts from @CryptoAlerts warn of similar recovery scams preying on desperate investors, per.
Alexey Zhirovkin, a Russian national, launched the original Antares Trade in 2020 as an MLM crypto Ponzi, rebooting it as Alcore Trade in 2021 before another collapse, per Chainalysis. Operating from the Dominican Republic under the alias “Alex Richter,” Zhirovkin defrauded investors through Alcore Trade and relaunched Antares Trade in 2022, per Interpol alerts. His schemes caused $340 million in losses, per DOJ estimates. After relocating to Turkey, Zhirovkin’s arrest followed a joint operation, highlighting international efforts against crypto fraud, per Europol. The new scam’s timing exploits the void left by Zhirovkin’s downfall, per.
The Central Bank of Russia issued a pyramid fraud warning on October 17, 2025, against the Antares Trade recovery scam, classifying it as an illegal operation, per CBR official statements. This follows similar alerts for Alcore Trade, emphasizing unregistered schemes, per Tass. The scam’s ties to Russia are evident, with low traffic but targeted at former victims, per SimilarWeb. Austria’s FMA also warned against related schemes like Alcore, per. X posts from @RussiaFinWatch note increased scrutiny on crypto Ponzi reboots, per.
The Antares Trade recovery scam underscores risks in unregulated crypto recovery schemes, with investors urged to avoid promises of high returns, per FTC guidelines. Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) remain stable at $113,234 and $4,070, but such scams erode trust, per CoinMarketCap. Monitor official warnings on cbr.ru and report fraud to authorities. Diversify into USDC with stop-losses below BTC’s $112,000, per TradingView. Follow @TheBlock__ on X for updates. With Zhirovkin’s case ongoing, expect more reboots, but stricter regulations could curb them by 2026, per.
