UK-based cryptocurrency payment company Dooga Ltd, trading under the registered trademark “Cubits”, entered Administration on 10 December 2018. Steve Parker and Trevor Binyon of Opus Restructuring & Insolvency (part of Opus Business Services Group) have been appointed as Joint Administrators
In its press release, Cubits claims it had lost funds worth €29 million ($32.8 million) in a “serious criminal act” conducted in February 2018:
Dooga was the victim of a serious criminal act, perpetrated from outside the organisation, which has critically impacted its business and finally led to the difficult decision to place the company into Administration.
Press Release Cubits, December 11, 2018
This criminal incident allegedly involved three Chinese traders who purchased Bitcoin (BTC) on Cubits via Malta-based payment processor Pay Secure Online Ltd, regularly known as PaySec. In January 2018, those three Chinese clients opened individual accounts with Cubits, to buy Bitcoins. PaySec was to be the payment channel for the processing of the payments for the Bitcoins. Unfortunately, Cubits never received the FIAT funds from PaySec.
Cubits suggested that the three Chinese clients had colluded to acquire the Bitcoins by apparently transferring money through PaySec. Furthermore, Cubits argued that PaySec had plotted the hack to receive the money and steal the Bitcoins. PaySec has denied having been involved in the ‘hack’ or that the ‘hacker’ has any business or social association with the owners of PaySec.
Since February, the Cubits guys have tried to recover these funds. Evidently, these efforts have been unsuccessful up until now. Amongst other measures, Cubits has filed two garnishee orders against PaySec which owes them €35 million.