Steynberg's simple life

INVESTORS: DUPED NO CLOSER TO KNOWING WHAT BECAME OF MILLIONS

- Stephen Timm

This is the third article in a special Moneyweb series on Mirror Trading International (MTI) CEO Johann Steynberg.

When Steynberg was reported to have died of a pulmonary embolism in Brazil in April, after fleeing to Sao Paulo in December 2020, there were rumours that the head of one of the world's biggest cryptocurrency scams had faked his death.

Now, using Brazilian court records and following a visit to Brazil, Stephen Timm attempts to piece together what really happened to Steynberg in Brazil.

For the over 15 300 investors who lost millions, if not billions, of rands when MTI imploded in late 2020, a key question remains - how much did the scam's kingpin make off with when he fled?

Steynberg was reported to have died in Goiania, Brazil in April of a pulmonary embolism.

While reports following his disappearance after a flight to Sao Paulo in December 2020 suggested he may have made off with over 22 000 bitcoin, more recent figures suggest the figure was no higher than 6 900 bitcoin, the amount that liquidators said was missing when all withdrawals had been accounted for.

While some of the missing bitcoin could be with the scheme's over 18 000 early investors who made money through MTI, liquidators suggested in court documents last year that Steynberg had received more than 28 bitcoin after MTI's liquidation in June 2021.

How much of the missing 6 900 bitcoin then ended up in Steynberg's pocket?

It's difficult to know.

Those questioned by Brazilian police following his arrest offer conflicting descriptions of Steynberg - with some even describing him as a man of modest means.

There was Steynberg's first Brazilian girlfriend, Adriele Cristiana Rodrigues Alencar, then 28 and the owner of online clothing store Closet Alencar.