Olena Oblamska, a co-founder of the decentralized investment platform Forsage, has entered a plea of not guilty in a U.S. federal court following her extradition from Thailand. She faces charges related to an alleged $340 million Ponzi scheme that authorities say defrauded countless investors worldwide.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon, the Ukrainian national, also known online as “Lola Ferrari,” appeared before a federal court in Portland on May 11. A magistrate judge ordered her to remain in custody pending a jury trial scheduled for July 14. Oblamska is the first of four Forsage founders charged in a 2023 federal indictment to face a U.S. court.
Investigators allege that Forsage operated as a global Ponzi and pyramid scheme, collecting approximately $340 million from investors. The platform promoted itself as a decentralized investment project on Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, and Tron. Prosecutors claim that most participants suffered losses, with blockchain analysis showing that over 80% of Ethereum program participants received less than they deposited and more than half received no payout at all before the scheme collapsed.
Court documents detail that Forsage sold “slots” via smart contracts, automatically funneling new investments to earlier participants, a classic Ponzi structure. Additionally, authorities assert that the founders embedded a backdoor in the project’s xGold smart contract to divert user funds into wallets they controlled. Despite the platform’s claims of creating millionaires, only one account—reportedly controlled by the defendants—received over $1 million in cryptocurrency.
Oblamska was arrested in Thailand in February during a raid on a Phuket condominium, where Thai officers seized phones, computers, and other electronics. Earlier court filings had described her as Russian and suggested she may have been hiding in Bali. With her transfer to the U.S. complete, she now faces a single count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
The Securities and Exchange Commission also pursued a civil case against Oblamska and others in August 2022, including U.S.-based promoters known as the “Crypto Crusaders.” The remaining three co-defendants remain outside U.S. custody. One of them, Vladimir Okhotnikov, identified as the operational leader, reportedly fled to Dubai. In 2024, a court in Tbilisi sentenced him in absentia to 10 years for laundering $1.1 million in Forsage proceeds. He has denied wrongdoing.
If convicted, Oblamska faces up to 20 years in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. The investigation continues with the FBI, U.S. Secret Service, and Homeland Security Investigations offices in New York and Bangkok. Authorities urge Forsage investors who lost money to come forward as potential victims.