The Vatican Bank denies any connection to VCT

The crypto community has  been alerted to a fraudulent operation involving  a suspicious crypto project offering fake token sales through a fraudulent “Vatican Chamber of Trade (VCT).” The Istituto per le Opere di Religione (IOR), commonly known as the Vatican Bank, has denied any connection to the fake crypto project, claiming ties to it.

The fictitious ‘Vatican Chamber’ scheme was hosted on a convincingly designed website that offered investors a chance to partake in a presale of tokens supposedly backed by the Vatican. The scam operators went to great lengths, including detailed descriptions of the token’s purpose and falsely citing partnerships with prominent blockchain networks.

The crypto token is connected to Coinbase

The promoters of the VCT token said it would give investors a way to help the so-called Vatican Chamber of Trade’s economy grow. They said a number of different tokenized assets and real-world projects backed it. 

The website described the token saying, “The Vatican Token is a blockchain-based digital asset that empowers investors to participate in the economic growth of the Vatican Chamber of Trade. Backed by a diverse portfolio of tokenized assets and real-world initiatives, the Vatican Token combines the stability of traditional investments with the dynamic growth potential of cryptocurrency.”

The token’s total supply was said to be 10 million, with each priced at 25 euros. There were 7 million in circulation, and 3 million were set aside in a reserve fund to pay for future growth and operating stability. 

Users clicked on the “buy token” button on the website and were taken to a Coinbase wallet page. However, the redirect came from vaticantrade.cb.id, which suggests that the website originally went to a page on the Coinbase-controlled domain cb.id that has since been deleted. Because it works with the Ethereum Name Service (ENS), Coinbase lets anyone claim a free subdomain called “username.cb.id” without having to go through Know Your Customer (KYC) checks.

A den of thieves’ invite 

The promoters also advertise VCT on a phishing website as a formal invitation to join one of the world’s most exclusive economic institutions. The people behind the event said that new members could join the Vatican Chamber of Trade “for the first time in a generation.”

The project’s website said that members who were accepted would get many benefits, such as introductions to private investors, keeping assets in trust, and “recognition and credibility.” Members were also told they would be able to buy fake VCT tokens early, get first access to tokenized asset offers, and be able to attend special events. 

Investors who wanted to join were also expected to be morally in line with the group’s core values.

The scam’s sophistication was further highlighted by a recent addition to the Vatican Bank’s Wikipedia page. It falsely claimed the organization was created in 1950. This edit was marked in red. This indicates a lack of sources and likely vandalism. The edit history showed that the mention was added on June 11.

Scammers are onto manipulating religious investors

On the website the scammers wrote, “We welcome you at the Vatican Chamber of Trade, may your finances as your faith be safe.”

This religious manipulation is not a first. In January, a preacher from Washington had stolen money from more than 1,500 investors and was charged with 26 counts of fraud. He supposedly said that the Solano Fi scheme came to him in a dream. 

If he is found guilty, he could spend up to 20 years in jail. As a reminder, the Vatican Chamber Token scam shows how important it is to be careful and do your research in the crypto market, where clever scams can fool even the smartest investors.

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