The co-founders of HashFlare, Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin, have requested a US court to consider their time served in custody as part of their sentencing for wire fraud. They face a potential 10-year prison sentence proposed by prosecutors for their involvement in a $577 million Ponzi scheme that resulted in significant financial losses for customers. Prosecutors claim that the duo caused about $300 million in losses, highlighting the magnitude of the fraud as the largest case the court has dealt with. In contrast, Potapenko and Turõgin's defense argues that most customers ended up making profits due to rising cryptocurrency values, asserting that 390,000 customers withdrew $2.3 billion against their initial investments of $487 million. They also emphasized their cooperation with authorities and the forfeited assets as part of their plea deal, which are expected to cover victims' losses. Their sentencing hearing is set for August 14, while they seek to clarify their status in the US, amid complications regarding their deportation despite a court order to remain in the country.

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