The Missing Cryptoqueen
Dr Ruja Ignatova persuaded millions to join her financial revolution. Then she disappeared. Why? Jamie Bartlett presents a story of greed, deceit and herd madness.
Episodes
16. Off the Record
OneCoin victims’ advocate Jen McAdam has helped convince hundreds of Dr Ruja’s scam victims to join her lawsuit. With Dr Ruja missing - possibly dead - it feels like this compensation lawsuit is their best shot at justice. But things take an unexpected turn.Featuring footage from: Good Morning Britain/ITV, The Islam brothers, Daniel Leinhardt/Youtube, TikTok/maseratimassage.
15. Pac-Man
OneCoin victim Jen McAdam lost thousands in the OneCoin scam, and nearly a decade on, it still dominates her life. Jen blames Dr Ruja, but with her still missing - possibly dead - justice looks unlikely. But Jen has a plan, and hundreds of other OneCoin victims join the fightback.
14. The Cablecar
With the FBI offering a $5m reward for Dr Ruja, her fame reaches new heights. And so does our search for her, with new clues pointing us to Cape Town, South Africa.Featuring footage from: Aron Hyman/The Cape of Cocaine podcast, Heart FM, TikTok/Coolstorybru, The Hunt, documentary series: Die Kryptoqueen - ARD/arte/WDR, Novinite Nova.
13. The South Africa Connection
New clues about Dr Ruja emerge in an unlikely - and dangerous - place. We pick up the trail with Scottish OneCoin investor Jen McAdam. Since we released the podcast, Jen’s become consumed by the search for Dr Ruja. Despite the evidence pointing to her murder, Jen’s not convinced - should we be?Featuring footage from: Aron Hyman/The Cape of Cocaine podcast by TimesLive, BTV, Novinite Nova, News24,
Coming Soon: Four New Episodes of The Missing Cryptoqueen
It’s been eight years since Dr Ruja Ignatova persuaded millions to join her financial revolution, before disappearing. Jamie Bartlett picks up the story of the now FBI-wanted fugitive; following a trail of greed, deceit, and herd madness.
12. Wanted: Dead or Alive?
The search for Dr Ruja Ignatova takes an unexpected turn when a story emerges alleging she's been murdered. But with with sightings of Dr Ruja still coming in long after her apparent demise, can it be true? We speak to the Bulgarian journalists behind the story and team up with BBC colleagues to investigate the murder theory. It takes us on a trail to a Bulgarian man widely suspected of heading an
11. Operation Satellite
How mysterious friends in influential places may have helped Ruja stay one step ahead. A massive revelation we only now know, but which Ruja knew years earlier. Who are they? And could they be helping her now?CREDITS
Presenter: Jamie Bartlett
Producers: Rob Byrne and Georgia Catt
Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original music and vocals: Dessislava Stefanova and the London Bulgari
10. The Dubai Files
The search for Dr Ruja Ignatova gathers pace, five years after she disappeared. Files leaked from Dubai reveal how Dr Ruja stashed millions in the emirate and struck up a relationship with a mysterious sheikh. Then, a careless selfie leads the podcast to a mansion in an exclusive gated community. As the FBI steps up its search, new information surfaces about Dr Ruja’s disappearance from an unlikel
9. Follow the Money
The search for Dr Ruja is back on. A lot has happened since Episode 8.Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original Music and vocals: Dessislava Stefanova and the London Bulgarian ChoirThis audio was updated on 12/08/2020 to reflect additional correspondence with Chelgate.
8. The Technology and the Dream
The final episode takes an unexpected twist.Presenter: Jamie Bartlett
Producer: Georgia Catt
Additional Research: Ignatius Bahizi
Editor: Philip Sellars
Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original Music and vocals: Dessislava Stefanova and the London Bulgarian Choir
7. In Plain Sight
Could Dr Ruja and the missing billions be hidden in plain sight? A number of small leads seem to be pointing to one place.Presenter: Jamie Bartlett
Producer: Georgia Catt
Editor: Philip Sellars
Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original Music and vocals: Dessislava Stefanova and the London Bulgarian ChoirEpisode 7 of 8. Released weekly
6. The Überflieger
In 2009 Dr Ruja and her father bought a metallurgic factory in Southern Germany. What does this have to do with her disappearance today? Those who knew her at the time tell a strangely familiar story about the impressive businesswoman who came to save their workplace.Presenter: Jamie Bartlett
Producer: Georgia Catt
Editor: Philip Sellars
Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original Mu
5. What Dreams May Come
'Who is to blame?'One of the world's highest-earning Multi-Level-Marketers and former OneCoin top seller agrees to speak. In his mansion on the outskirts of Amsterdam, Jamie learns the secret behind OneCoin's rapid growth and the huge amounts of money that has been made by those at the top.The Missing Cryptoqueen is an eight-part series for BBC Sounds, with new episodes every Thursday.Presenter: J
4. Miss OneLife
Jamie and Georgia arrive in Bucharest in the hope of seeing their first OneCoin event: The Miss OneLife 2019 Beauty Pageant.
Who else could be there?The Missing Cryptoqueen is an eight-part series for BBC Sounds, with new episodes every Thursday.Presenter: Jamie Bartlett
Producer: Georgia Catt
Editor: Philip Sellars
Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original Music and vocals: Dessis
3. More Than Just a Coin
In Spring this year, something unexpected happened. On March 6th 2019, Dr Ruja's brother Konstantin was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport and charged with money laundering and fraud in connection with OneCoin. Dr Ruja was also charged in absentia, and US authorities declared OneCoin a fraud. We thought this could be the end of OneCoin, and our search. It wasn't. Why?The Missing Cryptoq
2. The Bitcoin Killer
Not all is as it seems with Dr Ruja's revolutionary cryptocurrency, OneCoin.The Missing Cryptoqueen is an eight-part series for BBC Sounds, with new episodes every Thursday.Presenter: Jamie Bartlett
Producer: Georgia Catt
Story consultant: Chris Berube
Editor: Philip Sellars
Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original music and vocals: Dessislava Stefanova and the London Bulgarian Ch
1. Dr Ruja
Dr Ruja promised financial revolution. And then, two years ago, she disappeared. Why?The Missing Cryptoqueen is an eight-part series for BBC Sounds, with new episodes every Thursday.Presenter: Jamie Bartlett
Producer: Georgia Catt
Story consultant: Chris Berube
Editor: Philip Sellars
Original music and sound design: Phil Channell
Original music and vocals: Dessislava Stefanova and the London Bulga
Introducing... The Missing Cryptoqueen
In 2014, a businesswoman called Dr Ruja Ignatova launched a new cryptocurrency that promised to change money forever. OneCoin, she said, was similar to Bitcoin, only bigger, better and easier to use. Within two years, over 3 million people had joined the OneCoin revolution, and Dr Ruja became rich and famous. But then she suddenly disappeared and hasn’t been seen since.For the last six months, wri
