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On April 29, 2026, New York Attorney General Letitia James secured more than $5 million from cryptocurrency platform Uphold HQ, Inc. (Uphold) for misleading investors and promoting a fraudulent investment scheme orchestrated by Cred, LLC (Cred) and its Chief Executive Officer, Daniel Schatt. The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) investigation found that Uphold misleadingly promoted and offered Cred's investment product, CredEarn, to its customers in violation of New York law. From January 2019 through October 2020, Uphold advertised CredEarn as a reliable savings product, when in reality, Cred was making risky micro-loans to video game players in China with low monthly incomes, no credit histories, and no access to traditional credit. Uphold also falsely claimed that CredEarn was covered by "comprehensive insurance," despite no such investor protection existing in the cryptocurrency industry. The OAG also determined that Uphold illegally promoted CredEarn without registering as a broker or commodity broker-dealer. When Cred declared bankruptcy in November 2020 due to significant losses from its risky lending practices and mismanagement, thousands of Uphold customers worldwide lost millions of dollars. As part of the settlement, Uphold will pay $5 million to harmed investors—more than five times the fees it collected—and must register as a broker with the OAG. All payments Uphold receives from Cred's bankruptcy proceedings, totalling $545,189, will also be distributed to affected customers. Additionally, Uphold must maintain and improve its due diligence policies before partnering with or recommending third-party investment products. Investors will receive notification from Uphold regarding fund distribution to their accounts. REFERENCES: Office of the New York Attorney General. "Attorney General James Secures Over $5 Million from Crypto Platform for Promoting Fraudulent Investment Scheme." April 29, 2026. https://ag.ny.gov/