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Brazilian Judge Dismisses Bitcoin Scam Mastermind’s Attempt to Block His Extradition To South Africa

A Brazilian judge ruled that Mirror Trading International’s CEO should remain in precautionary custody as South African authorities have provided their Brazilian counterparts the documentation required to extradite the CEO. Johann Steynberg’s attempt to use his Brazilian family to end his precautionary detention was also rejected by the judge.

Documentation for Steynberg’s Formal Extradition

A Brazilian judge rejected Johann Steynberg’s application to have his precautionary custody revoked. Steynberg is the man behind Mirror Trading International (MTI), South Africa’s largest cryptocurrency scams. According to reports, MTI’s chief executive had claimed that he should be placed under house arrest as a result of no extradition request.

Steynberg also argued that when he left South Africa in December 2020, there was no outstanding warrant for his arrest and that the case itself failed to meet certain requirements which would make extradition possible. According to the Brazilian judiciary’s document, Steynberg also stated that he had started a family in Brazil since December. Therefore, placing him under house arrest would suffice.

However, in his ruling, Brazilian supreme court judge Andre Mendonca rejected arguments brought forward by Steynberg. The judge stated that the South African authorities had actually “presented documentation aimed to formalize the extradition request [on April 14, 2022.]”

“.

In addition, the judge noted that a warrant for Steynberg’s arrest was also “issued on 03/01/2022 by the Justice of South Africa, as evidenced by Interpol’s Red Diffusion documents.” A document reportedly sent by the South African Public Ministry suggested that the MTI CEO was being probed for his role in the bitcoin scam when he left the country.

Steynberg a Flight Risk

As previously reported by Bitcoin.com News, before disappearing in late 2020, Steynberg had handed control of MTI funds to his wife Nerina. Yet by the time he was arrested by Brazilian law enforcement in December 2021, the former MTI mastermind was reportedly in a relationship with a Brazilian woman.

Regarding Steynberg’s attempt to use his intimate relationship and the unnamed woman to justify his extradition, Mendonca stated:

The fact that the person being extradited has taken up residence in Brazil and constituted a family does not, in itself, prevent the precautionary arrest and the future extradition. According to the Attorney General’s Office the rule in extraditions does not prevent the person being extradited from taking up residence in Brazil and forming a family.

The judge stated that Steynberg may have fake identification documents at the time he was arrested, which suggests that he intends to avoid possible criminal liability.

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Terence Zimwara

Terence Zimwara, a Zimbabwean journalist, author, and writer has been awarded the Zimbabwe Journalism Award. He has written extensively on the economic problems of African countries and how digital currencies can offer an escape route.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. This article is not intended to be a solicitation or offer to buy or sell any products or services. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. The author and the company are not responsible for any loss or damage resulting from or related to the use or reliance of any content, goods, or services in this article.

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OKB price dips 20% as OKB Boost contract glitch drains entire reward pool

The malfunction allowed 32 wallets to claim 623M PYBOBO within 4 seconds. The event emptied nearly all the 625M reward pool almost instantly. The glitch coincides with OKB’s price underperformance. The virtual currency sector recorded another sell-off on Friday as Bitcoin lost 10% in the past 24 hours to press time’s $81,865. The global crypto…


OKB price dips 20% as OKB Boost contract glitch drains an entire reward pool

  • The malfunction allowed 32 wallets to claim 623M PYBOBO within 4 seconds.
  • The event emptied nearly all the 625M reward pool almost instantly.
  • The glitch coincides with OKB’s price underperformance.

The virtual currency sector recorded another sell-off on Friday as Bitcoin lost 10% in the past 24 hours to press time’s $81,865.

The global crypto market cap stands at $2.81 trillion after a 10% decline over the last day.

Amidst the broader bloodbath, OKX’s native token suffered the most as the downside coincided with OKX facing new scrutiny after an unexpected contract glitch in its recent Boost reward campaign.

A planned distribution of PYBOBO coins ended up with nearly all the pool drained within four minutes, and it wasn’t the massive demand as earlier thought.

🚨UPDATE: OKX’s PYBOBO Reward Pool drained in seconds.

Users report massive claims cleared almost instantly, showing the insane demand and liquidity frenzy. pic.twitter.com/mER1GrLeRJ

— The Crypto Times (@CryptoTimes_io) November 21, 2025

OKX’s token underperformed the overall cryptocurrency market in the past 24 hours.

It dipped from $115 to $94 during this writing, and over 18% dip on its daily price chart.

OKB experienced intensified selling pressure as the news of contract malfunctioning spread.

A 4-second glitch empties 99.68% of incentives

On-chain stats show that 32 addresses claimed 623 million PYBOBO coins, wiping nearly all the 625 million allocated for the distribution event.

The most striking thing is that the entire sweep took only four seconds, catching the team and participants unaware.

Notably, a multifunction within the OKX Boost claim contract seems to have permitted abnormal, rapid claims, allowing a few addresses to receive far more PYBOBO tokens than initially planned.

OKLink identified a particular wallet that claimed 37.847 million tokens, worth roughly $18,600.

Nevertheless, what’s striking is how fast the pool evaporated, with 99.68% of rewards gone by the time the ream noticed the glitch.

The event’s nature indicates an unintended move that propelled distributions well beyond their specified limits.

OKX Wallets halts claiming amid investigations

The team acknowledged the issue immediately after the reports emerged and confirmed delaying PYBOBO claiming until after resolving the contract issuer.

Claiming for PYBOBO rewards will be postponed.

We’ll provide updates here once the issue has been resolved.

— OKX Wallet (@wallet) November 21, 2025

The temporary pause aims to prevent further potential damage as the project conducts a review.

The team has promised to publish more updates as they investigate the matter.

The incident sent ripples across the OKX ecosystem. OKB testified to that with its overwhelming selling pressure.

OKB price outlook

OKX’s token  hit a daily low of $94 after losing the $100 psychological mark.

It has dropped from a daily high of $115, losing over 18% of its value in the past 24 hours.

OKB has seen its daily trading volume surge 100%, signaling increased speculative activity.

The digital coin would likely slump further before regaining a dependable footing as sellers thrive in the current financial landscape.


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BNB price revisits $805 amid market dump; what’s the forecast?

Binance ecosystem’s native coin BNB, is amongthe  top losers in the crypto market today. The altcoin has seen bears push prices to near $800. As altcoins mirror Bitcoin, the BNB price could plummet well below the intraday lows. BNB is under pressure as a broader market downturn puts the token near the $800 support level.…


BNB Price Dips To $800

  • Binance ecosystem’s native coin BNB, is amongthe  top losers in the crypto market today.
  • The altcoin has seen bears push prices to near $800.
  • As altcoins mirror Bitcoin, the BNB price could plummet well below the intraday lows.

BNB is under pressure as a broader market downturn puts the token near the $800 support level.

With market turmoil likely to trigger further losses amid profit taking and heightened risk aversion, the BNB price could risk extending the dip across the past month beyond -24%.

Meanwhile, the total crypto market capitalization is down by 9% to below $2.9 trillion.

The global daily volume is up 43% to over $256 billion as Ethereum, Solana and other tokens plummet.

Another leg down could be bad news for BNB.

BNB price performance today

BNB’s intraday volatility has been stark.

After the token opened at around $866, bulls briefly managed a retest of $904.

However, intensified selling across the market triggered fresh selling to extend losses seen on Thursday.

The nearly 10% dip saw BNB price hover to lows of $805.

Meanwhile, daily trading volume surged 49% to over $4.39 billion, a metric that signalled increased selling pressure.

This breaching of crucial support levels adds to the vulnerability that has built since the token’s plunge below the psychological $1,000 mark.

In the past 24 hours, crypto traders have witnessed a brutal liquidation cascade.

Over $2 billion in leveraged positions have been wiped out, and while Bitcoin and Ethereum lead, a notable portion is across BNB bets.

Data from Coinglass reveals $8.3 million in liquidations for BNB.

BNB price falls after ecosystem hack

On Nov. 20, the BNB Chain ecosystem suffered a setback.

Per blockchain security platforms, the Binance platform saw the decentralized payment finance protocol GANA Payment fall victim to a sophisticated exploit.

The result – a $3.1 million drain from its contracts and liquidity pools.

The BNB token fell amid crypto market reaction to the news.

Further weakness linked to macroeconomic fears combined with a technical breakdown to extinguish the bulls’ glimmer of hope.

The bounce to $903 suggests not all is bleak, but to lift the lid of gloom, buyers have to take control.

Binance coin price outlook

Given Relative Strength Index is at 27 on the daily chart, it signals oversold conditions.

However, the downsloping outlook of the RSI indicates there’s room for bears to dominate further.

The Moving Average Convergence Divergence, or MACD, also paints a bearish picture.

BNB Price Chart
BNB price chart by TradingView

As with the RSI, momentum from the MACD signals bull exhaustion after the bearish crossover on October 14, 2025.

The daily chart shows buy-side pressure buoyed bulls, but the indicator’s potential bullish crossover failed to validate.

Invalidation risks now include a decisive RSI plunge below 30. The MACD indicates pullback continuation.

Broader market liquidity issues could allow sellers to break below $800.

On the flipside, a bounce will bring $900 into play and potentially a return to above $1,000.


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Bitcoin ETFs Reclaim Momentum as Solana ETFs Outshine Ether

Bitcoin ETFs resumed their upward momentum with fresh inflows, while ether ETFs fell back into outflows. Solana funds, meanwhile, delivered another strong day, driven by broad-based inflows across all major issuers. Ether Slips, Solana Surges, and Bitcoin Extends Inflow Streak The crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) market closed Tuesday…
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