JuicyFields Founders Disappear in a Puff of Smoke

International cannabis crowd-funding platform JuicyFields appears to have imploded amidst accusations that it is a pyramid scheme that has fleeced thousands of investors of their cash. 

The Dutch-based company shut down its social media platforms in the first week of July 2022, unpaid staff went on strike on 11 July 2022, and the founders have effectively disappeared.

It's unclear at this stage what effect JuicyField ‘s closure will have on its South African investments, licensed local cultivator Canna Yeza, based in Lanseria, and Canna Trade Africa, owners of The Green Side health and wellness cannabis venues. JuicyFields was the key sponsor of the Sandton and Cape Town cannabis expos in the last 12 months, but expo organizer Sarah Howarth told Cannabiz Africa on 19 July 2022 that it was not a sponsor of this weekend’s Durban Cannabis Expo, being held at the Globe at the Suncoast Resort and that the Expo was going ahead as planned with over 100 exhibitors.

High Times https://bit.ly/3b1bEco reported on 19 July 2022 that the “implosion of the scam has affected literally tens of thousands of investors in Spain, Germany, the U.K., the Netherlands, France, Columbia, and the U.S.—all of whom have now had a shattering and disillusioning experience with the wild and crazy world of legalizing cannabis”.

Spanish Investors Hardest Hit

According to Spanish media, which have been increasingly covering the story, 5,000 Spaniards lost hundreds of thousands of euros in what is now being called the largest crypto scam in Spanish history.” Madrid legal firm Martinez Blanco, which represents over 1 000 investors is attempting to recover funds from the company’s Cyprian bank account.

High Times claims that Juicy Fields was run by an Italian-Russian-Columbian “family” that was only interested in one thing: “collecting investors’ cash”.

“The idea was, on the surface of it all, quite original. Juicy Fields, a cannabis “investment” platform, supposedly connected micro investors with small cannabis farmers to “fund” crop cultivation that was then legitimately sold. Investors were told they could expect returns of up to 66% on their investment in just 90 days. More problematically, investors were also allowed to deposit up to 180.000 Euros via bank transfer or crypto investment in the platform without going through required background checks that are standard procedure in both reputable banking and fintech apps.”

Spanish media channel elDairo.es https://bit.ly/3B6B2s2 reported that the “project has proven to be a textbook pyramid scheme, but this time with the attractiveness that a booming sector such as cannabis represents for many investors."

High Times reports that “before the final meltdown in the middle of July, the fraud began to unravel after a luxurious, Juicy-funded splash this spring at an industry event in Barcelona. Two Lamborghinis were parked outside the lavish party with the motto “Foster the Future.” Attendees found themselves in a lavish fantasyland with good food and alcohol that flowed freely, with models dressed as blue fairies and blond, wispy hostesses decorating the background. It was certainly pretty but it did not exactly inspire confidence that all was kosher.”

In Spain, the local press at least began to report that the company was violating Spanish securities law. The German financial regulator, BaFin, posted a warning on its website on 30 March 2022 that the firm had published no prospectus which is required for the sale of any kind of security. As a result, German sales were shut down.

JuicyFields Still Hoping to Pull Through

“Willie and the JuicyFields team” issued a statement on 18 July 2022 saying that a restructure was underway and that investors should not take fright. “The owners, as a precautionary measure, have decided to restrict access to certain accounts in order to prevent breaches and hacking. 

Attempts to hack into the secure locations where your money is stored are a constant threat that the technical teams have to deal with on a daily basis. 

To start speculating that your money is insecure or that the owners of Juicy Fields are going to run off with your hard-earned money is a constant threat that the technical teams have to deal with on a daily basis. where are they going to hide if they try that, and why would they destroy a profitable company like Juicy Fields? Please be patient for a little longer and don’t listen to the handful of negative people who are always trying to spread baseless rumours. 

Change is coming 100%, and you will have the right to either accept and embrace that change or take your and embrace that change or take your business elsewhere if you feel uncomfortable. Give me and my small team time to complete the work we have set out to do”.