The CEO of a Florida cryptocurrency firm is accused of operating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of at least $328 million, federal prosecutors have announced.
Christopher Alexander Delgado, 34, of Apopka, was arrested Tuesday on charges of wire fraud and money laundering, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice. He is the founder, president and CEO of the blockchain firm Goliath Ventures, formerly known as Gen Z Venture Firm, which is headquartered in Orlando.
Delgado adopted a flashy lifestyle with expensive houses, opulent company-sponsored parties and frequent press releases about his exploits, but had been best known in Central Florida for his philanthropic pursuits. One of his alleged victims told investigators that Delgado’s public association with charities and community events led him to trust Goliath’s legitimacy, court records show.
Prosecutors said Delgado operated the Ponzi scheme from January 2023 to January 2026. It involved soliciting victims to invest substantial sums of money under false and fraudulent promises of monthly returns generated through cryptocurrency “liquidity pools,” according to the news release.
Victims were induced to give money to Goliath through personal referrals, professional marketing materials, luxury events, charitable sponsorships and some monthly payments of purported returns, all of which were designed to establish Goliath’s “bona fides” with investors, the release said.
But federal investigators said while Goliath fraudulently obtained at least $328 million from investors, only about $1 million was ever placed into a liquidity pool.
The funds were instead primarily used to pay purported returns to earlier investors, to return principal to investors who requested it, and for Goliath’s “extravagant” business gatherings, holiday parties, and luxury travel accommodations, the release said.
Delgado would also use the funds for personal expenditures, including the purchase of residential properties in Windermere, Winter Park, Kissimmee and Sanford that were each worth between $1.15 million and $8.5 million, court documents show.
Investigators say Delgado and his co-conspirators took various steps to hide the scheme, such as providing investors with fabricated statements about their investments.
Beginning in late 2025, when investors attempted to withdraw their principal investments or collect their purported returns, Goliath would delay payments while providing shifting explanations for the delay. Eventually, it restricted or ended investor access to information about their investments, records show.
One investor who lives in Seminole County said he lost about $720,000. An acquaintance had told him he had invested about $1 million with Goliath and was making consistent returns, leading the two men to subsequently meet with a Goliath representative.
The investor ultimately made a “joint venture agreement” with Delgado in June 2023, records show, that falsely represented that the funds would be invested in liquidity pools. Investigators say such agreements made between Goliath and victim investors were often signed by Delgado himself.
The investor said he later met Delgado through his own involvement in an unnamed charitable organization for which Goliath was a major sponsor. Delgado’s public association with charities led him to trust Goliath’s legitimacy, records show.
Last year, Delgado pledged to donate $2 million by the end of 2025 to the Victoria’s Voice Foundation, the nonprofit founded by the late Westgate Resorts founder David Siegel and his wife Jacqueline Siegel, to go towards the Angel Army drug abuse prevention and awareness initiative launched by Victoria’s Voice and other groups.
Leah Shepherd, the executive director of Victoria’s Voice, said Wednesday the organization only received $250,000 from Delgado, none of which was spent. The group’s board decided earlier Wednesday to set the funds aside while the investigation into Delgado is ongoing.
In an August interview with the Orlando Sentinel, Delgado said he was motivated to donate to the initiative because of his uncle’s struggle with drug addiction. Delgado also said he attended U.S. President Donald Trump’s signing of the HALT Fentanyl Act at the White House with Jacqueline Siegel.
A spokesperson for Delgado at the time said Delgado was also advising lawmakers on new crypto legislation during his time in D.C.
Delgado had also dabbled in politics, having made a failed bid for a seat on the Orange County Board of Commissioners in 2022. He came in a distant third in the race.
“My promise to you is that I will always vote in favor of the best interest to my community and vote no on anything that would negatively effect you!” Delgado said on his campaign website.
Delgado made his first court appearance Tuesday. A federal judge granted a request from Delgado releasing him from custody, according to court records.
Anyone who believes they may have been a victim and have not been contacted by law enforcement should email Goliathvictims@ci.irs.gov.
