Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1546283
4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 AUGUST 2026 NEWS Terms apply. €4.95 / month Stream, surf, chat. Endless Mobile Plans AI generated content Betrayed: DistributeX members seek answers as recruiters go dark RECRUITERS for digital plat- form DistributeX have gone dark, leaving those they enticed into a system that had the hall- marks of a Ponzi scheme ruing their fate. People who put hundreds and, in some cases, thousands of eu- ros into DistributeX have come forward to recount their experi- ence. And they all tell the same story of betrayal, frustration and anger after losing their 'invest- ment'. The Malta Financial Servic- es Authority (MFSA) has since warned that DistributeX and en- tities and individuals operating under its name are not and have never been licensed, authorised, regulated or otherwise approved by the regulator. The MFSA has also rejected claims by DistributeX that it held discussions with the au- thority over its activities. In a statement, the MFSA specifically warned people against transfer- ring a €300 payment requested by the platform as part of what it described as a compliance verifi- cation process. But for those who joined the platform, the operation initially appeared sufficiently credible to encourage them to put their money in it. One man, who asked not to be identified, said he first heard about DistributeX through a friend of his wife. He carried out his own research and was aware of signs that raised questions about the operation, but decid- ed to invest an amount he could afford to lose. What helped convince him to go along was DistributeX's presence in the physical world. The platform has four outlets. The man and his wife initially put in €250 each at what Distrib- uteX calls Level 2. After about a month, they recovered their money and decided to put in more. They each invested a further €800 to reach Level 3, with one of the accounts eventually re- turning its €800 deposit. The couple subsequently en- countered the €300 payment demanded by DistributeX for a purported compliance verifica- tion. The man decided to make the payment in an attempt to recov- er his funds, only to be told af- terwards that he needed to pay a further €800 to return to Level 3 and recover the money in his account. "It was clear they were trying to siphon off more and more money," he said, adding the cou- ple ultimately lost €800 and the €300 payment. The experience is being re- peated among other members, including within Malta's Filipino community, which was targeted by DistributeX. A Filipino woman told this newspaper that she was intro- duced to the platform by friends and was persuaded by what ap- peared to be signs of an estab- lished business. "What convinced me was that I saw a physical office, advertising on bus stops and other places, and that to me made the com- pany legit," she said, adding the company was presented to her as an investment opportunity. A group of around 10 friends eventually joined the platform, with the woman putting approx- imately €700 into a Level 3 ac- count in July. She has managed to recover only €290. But she also knows a friend who had invested €2,000. A few weeks after joining, the woman came across MaltaTo- day reports about DistributeX and began to suspect that some- thing was wrong. Days later, the €300 "verifica- tion fee" was introduced and she decided to pay it, hoping it would allow her to regain access to her money. When asked whether the fee could instead be deducted from the credits already showing in her account, she was told this was not possible because she no longer had access to those funds. Attempts to establish why the payment was required only raised further questions. "They would give me long-winded non-answers," she said. She is now among a group of former DistributeX members trying to establish what options are available to them. "We don't know where to turn to." The uncertainty has been com- pounded by the silence of some of the people who had previously recruited new members. "People who used to recruit new members have also gone dark, and not replying to mes- sages or calls," she said. She believes some recruit- ers may themselves be worried about potential investigations, while also feeling embarrassed about their involvement. For her, however, the issue goes beyond the money she lost. "You feel betrayed and you do feel a bit stupid," she said. DistributeX's business mod- el was described by the MFSA as having features resembling multi-level marketing arrange- ments and potentially exhibit- ing elements linked to pyramid schemes. The regulator has said transactions with unlicensed en- tities are unregulated and carry risks for consumers. The Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority has also joined the MFSA in investi- gating DistributeX over poten- tial breaches linked to its busi- ness structure. DistributeX members were encouraged to deposit crypto- currency, complete daily tasks through an application and re- cruit others into the network in return for rewards. Withdraw- als were subject to conditions including a 180-day period and completion of daily tasks. KARL AZZOPARDI kazzopardi@mediatoday.com.mt One of DistributeX's locations in Malta (Photo: James Bianchi/MaltaToday)