One of the first named plaintiffs in a new lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase says he lost $650,000 — including retirement savings — because of an alleged $328 million crypto Ponzi scheme that the bank helped maintain.
Robby Alan Steele is among more than 2,000 investors who say they were defrauded by Goliath Ventures, a Florida-based crypto investment firm that prosecutors say raised hundreds of millions of dollars under false pretenses.
JPMorgan named Goliath’s only financial institution
A proposed class-action lawsuit filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California accuses JPMorgan of letting Goliath use its banking infrastructure to attract investor funds while ignoring warning signs that something was wrong.
Source: Law.com
According to the complaint, JPMorgan was the only bank to hold Goliath’s accounts from January 2023 to mid-2025, the majority of the program.
During this period, approximately $250 million flowed through a single JPMorgan account linked to Goliath. Around $123 million was sent to Goliath wallets held at Coinbase.
Investors accuse JPMorgan Chase of contributing to $328 million Ponzi scheme
– The Recorder (@RecorderTweets) March 11, 2026
Lawyers say the sheer volume flowing through a single account should have triggered scrutiny under federal banking rules that require institutions to know who their customers are and what those customers do with their money.
“Chase, by virtue of its Know Your Customer obligations, actually knew that Goliath was acting as a private equity cryptocurrency pool operator investing money for investors, without being authorized at all to sell those investments,” the complaint states.
Goliath, initially called Gen-Z Venture Firm, operated from January 2023 to January 2026, based on court documents. CEO Christopher Delgado was arrested on February 24 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.
He faces charges of wire fraud and money laundering. If convicted on all counts, he could spend up to 30 years in federal prison.
Bank Of America also appears in federal case
A separate federal criminal complaint also names Bank of America. Prosecutors say Delgado was a co-signer on a BOA business account used by Goliath, with at least one investor directed to that account by company representatives.
Investor funds, based in the government account, were routed through the JPMorgan account, the BOA account, or sent directly to Goliath’s Coinbase wallets, all controlled by Delgado.
The civil suit was filed by attorneys at Shaw Lewenz, Sonn Law Group and Schwartzbaum. Lead attorney Jordan Shaw said more complaints are coming as the team continues to identify people believed to be involved in the scheme.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
Editorial process as Bitcoinist focuses on providing thoroughly researched, accurate and unbiased content. We follow strict sourcing standards and every page undergoes careful review by our team of top technology experts and seasoned editors. This process ensures the integrity, relevance and value of our content to our readers.
