Centra Tech
Summary
Centra Tech was a Miami-based cryptocurrency startup that conducted a fraudulent initial coin offering (ICO) in mid-2017, raising over $32 million from thousands of investors through an extensive web of fabricated executives, fake partnerships with Visa and Mastercard, and undisclosed celebrity endorsements from Floyd Mayweather Jr. and DJ Khaled. All three co-founders — Sohrab Sharma, Robert Farkas, and Raymond Trapani — pleaded guilty to federal securities fraud, wire fraud, and mail fraud charges; Sharma was sentenced to eight years in federal prison. The case remains one of the most significant ICO enforcement actions in U.S. history.
Connected Entities
1 entities · 10 linked investigations- + 2 more
Timeline(12 events)
2017-07-30
Centra Tech launches its ICO for CTR tokens, claiming a crypto debit card product backed by Visa, Mastercard, and The Bancorp.
ICO Drops / CoinSpeaker2017-09-25
Centra Tech ICO closes, having raised over $32 million from thousands of investors. CTR token subsequently listed on exchanges including Binance.
CoinSpeaker2018-04-02
SEC files civil complaint against co-founders Sohrab Sharma and Robert Farkas; DOJ announces simultaneous criminal charges. Both founders arrested — Farkas was apprehended before boarding a flight to leave the country.
SEC Litigation Release LR-24090 / DOJ SDNY Press Release2018-04-20
Third co-founder Raymond Trapani arrested and charged with securities and wire fraud exceeding $25 million.
CoinTelegraph2018-05-02
FBI seizes approximately 91,000 units of Ether representing funds raised from ICO victims, later valued at over $60 million.
DOJ SDNY Indictment Press Release2018-11-29
SEC announces settled charges against Floyd Mayweather Jr. and DJ Khaled for failing to disclose ICO promotional payments. Mayweather agrees to pay approximately $614,775; Khaled agrees to pay approximately $152,725. SEC bars Mayweather from securities promotions for three years, Khaled for two years.
SEC Press Release 2018-2682020-06-16
Robert Farkas pleads guilty to conspiring to commit securities fraud and wire fraud in connection with the CTR Token ICO.
CoinDesk2020-12-15
Robert Farkas sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lorna Schofield to one year and one day in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and forfeiture of $347,062 plus a Rolex watch.
Bloomberg / CoinDesk2021-03-04
Sohrab Sharma sentenced to eight years in federal prison, three years of supervised release, a $20,000 fine, and forfeiture of approximately $36 million — the stiffest penalty among the three co-founders.
The Block / CoinTelegraph2022-04-01
Raymond Trapani sentenced; court imposes no prison time, citing his extraordinary cooperation with federal prosecutors. Trapani ordered to pay $2.9 million in restitution.
Law360 / Bustle2022-05-17
U.S. District Court enters final civil consent judgments against all three founders, ordering combined disgorgement and interest of over $40 million (satisfied by parallel criminal forfeitures) and imposing permanent injunctions and officer-and-director bars.
SEC Litigation Release LR-25396 / Crowdfund Insider2024-01-01
Netflix releases 'Bitconned,' a feature documentary on the Centra Tech fraud directed by Bryan Storkel and featuring Raymond Trapani's account of the scheme.
Netflix TudumDecision Log
- hash: 5tr4NNbj3LLLxTDNQTdHV9eHB6g71rbnrhpfpQGgbqQ3
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain and source URLs are archived via the Internet Archive.
model: claude-code-investigator
generated: 5/31/2026, 6:13:09 PM
last updated: 5/31/2026, 6:13:13 PM
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