Bitcoin pyramid schemes wreak havoc on Brazil’s ‘New Egypt’
Despite the long list of charges he faces, Glaidson Acácio dos Santos—a former waiter-turned-multimillionaire who is the central figure in what is alleged to be one of Brazil’s biggest-ever pyramid schemes—represents an unlikely hero to his fervent supporters. Many view him as a modest Black man whose unorthodox Bitcoin business made them wealthy by gaming a financial system they believe is rigged by wealthy white elites.