(NAIROBI, KENYA) – The operator behind a Kenyan investment scheme that has been cited in court for fraud is recruiting victims into a new platform, asking them to deposit KES 51,800 ($400 / GBP 302) to unlock money frozen in the previous scheme.
The person, who uses the name Carl Grindan and is known as “Prof Carl”, has launched a platform called Apollo Exchange. He has promised investors that the new entity will transfer funds from the collapsed QVSE scheme once they pay the deposit.
Grindan has given more than 12,000 Kenyan investors until 25th September to make the payment or lose the cash held in QVSE accounts. The notices were sent through BonChat, a private messaging app.
The total funds locked in QVSE accounts are estimated at close to KES 1 billion ($7.7 million / GBP 5.8 million).
The development emerged on the same day that two local agents of the QVSE scheme were charged with fraudulently inducing trading in securities and operating an investment scheme without a licence from the Capital Markets Authority.
Ruth Mueni Kimeu and Mary Katuma Mwangangi appeared before a Nairobi court. The charge sheet states that between 15th January 2026 and 17th September 2026, at an unknown place in Kenya, they jointly induced members of the public to subscribe for and trade in securities through QVSE and Global Investment Group. They did so, the court heard, by publishing statements and making promises that were deceptive.
Ms Kimeu works for Machakos County. Ms Mwangangi is a primary school teacher. Both denied two counts of collecting investments and fraudulently inducing investment in securities.
Prosecutors allege that the two persuaded Kenyans to trade in securities through QVSE by publishing misleading statements and making false promises.
As the Capital Markets Authority and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations continued to probe QVSE and its parent firm Global Investment Group, the person behind the scheme opened a new firm and continued operating.
Global Investment Group has been associated with an American named Marc Hudon.
Grindan has told investors that Apollo will transfer their frozen funds from QVSE to the new entity once they pay the KES 51,800 deposit. He says investors will be able to withdraw both their transferred QVSE balances and the new deposit from 25th September.
The scheme had promised investors a daily return of $12 (KES 1,554 / GBP 9.06).
“This is equivalent to us opening up a brand-new safe withdrawal channel for everyone on the new platform, bypassing the old channel to safely redeem the money that rightfully belongs to you,” Grindan said in a message to investors seen by the Business Daily.
“The principal and earnings in every member’s account exist in the backend.”
Since January, QVSE has attracted thousands of Kenyans. They include teachers, small traders, professionals and boda boda operators. The scheme promised large returns from trading in US stocks such as Apple, Nvidia and Tesla.
The model relied on copy trading. A signal provider such as Grindan would alert investors to start trading using their digital capital. The capital was apportioned to mirror the preferred trades of QVSE.
Investor cash was stored in stablecoins. Investors were expected to cash out by trading the cryptocurrencies on Binance.
Investors were required to deposit $500 (KES 65,000 / GBP 377) or $1,000 (KES 130,000 / GBP 755) into their QVSE accounts. Grindan sent trading signals through BonChat, which listed 12,005 investors.
Kenyans who deposited $500 received $6 (KES 777 / GBP 4.53) per trade. A $1,000 account earned $12 (KES 1,554 / GBP 9.06) per trade. Grindan sent signals twice daily, allowing investors to double their returns.
On 5th September, Grindan froze the QVSE accounts. He accused some members of creating multiple accounts to increase their trading limits.
He then asked investors to make additional deposits equal to their initial principal, either KES 65,000 or KES 129,000, for their accounts to be activated. That promise turned out to be false.
A week later, on 12th September, the Capital Markets Authority listed QVSE and Global Investment Group among 15 entities it said were operating illegally in Kenya. The regulator said the entities lacked permits to support their businesses.
“These entities are the subject of active investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations in collaboration with the Capital Markets Authority and other law enforcement agencies,” the Capital Markets Authority said.
“The Authority strongly cautions the public against dealing with entities and persons disguising their fraudulent activities as investment opportunities.”
Grindan dismissed the regulator’s warning. He told investors to put more money on the platform, claiming that the notice lacked substance.
“The content is merely performative and lacks real substance; it is simply a way for them to signal to the public that they are taking action, rather than being based on anything tangible,” read a message sent on BonChat.
Apollo is the latest investment platform Grindan is running under Global Investment Group. It follows QVSE, which ran into trouble, and an earlier scheme known as PCEX, which the Capital Markets Authority said operated in Kenya illegally.
PCEX used a similar copy trading model. Investors deposited $500.
The scheme encouraged members to recruit more people by awarding them bonus signal transactions to boost their account holdings. PCEX announced a temporary closure on 16th April 2025, citing internal issues and pending regulatory processes. Grindan told investors they could not withdraw their cash until January 2026, when it would complete a review of all funds.
The company did not reopen. It is unclear how much money Kenyans lost.
Grindan has used a photograph of a white, middle aged Caucasian man in a dark grey plaid blazer and white Oxford shirt.
The Business Daily conducted a reverse search of the photograph. It showed the image was first uploaded on the internet in September 2021 under the portfolio of a Norway based photographer, alongside five other shots.
A similar picture, apparently from the same shoot, is currently the LinkedIn profile picture of a business executive at a major Norwegian automotive group.
Regulatory filings show Global Investment Group was incorporated in Colorado, United States, in June 2025. Its registered agent was listed as Marc Hudon. The company has not made any filings since.
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