Three British 23-year olds have been charged with money laundering and wire fraud by the Southern District of New York after an investigation by the FBI.  

Mohamed-Amin Atcha, Mohamed Rilaz Waleedh and Daood Hassan, will face trial in New York as the bulk of victims were based in the city.

2021 saw the craze of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), fuelled by the 10,000 ‘bored ape’ images flooding the internet, which could have inspired the similar ‘evolved ape’ scheme reportedly defrauding over $2m (£1.6m) out of hopeful investors.

The four original creators who made the Bored Ape NFTs which were heavily circulated through 2021 ended up generating around $1bn (£790m). A single image, Ape number 8,187, sold for $3.4m (£2.7m).