Authorities have further detained 26 suspects and identified Vu Dinh Hung and Pham Manh Hung in Ho Chi Minh City and Pham Thi Thai in Hanoi as ring leaders of Rforex.com, Yaibroker, Vistaforex, and Exswiss.
According to investigators, the ring developed and operated the four illegal gold, virtual and foreign currency exchange floors along with 15 related websites utilizing an interface similar to forex trading floors around the world.
The ring rented a foreign server and called for players to participate in trading foreign and virtual currency on its floor, promising a zero-loss scenario.
"The purpose is to attract as many players as possible to appropriate their property or to organize gambling," investigators stated.
Suspects had operated under the cover of legal entity Rforex Co. Ltd, registered in the U.K. with a total transaction value of tens of thousands of dollars.
The four floors have attracted almost 12,000 players from 27 different countries. Among them, some had invested over VND10 billion ($433,000).
Cryptocurrency has not been recognized as a legitimate means of payment in Vietnam. The State Bank of Vietnam has warned that owning, trading and using cryptocurrency was risky and not protected by the law.
Police are continuing their investigation.