There’s something fishy about the Fish Tech startup

An Indonesian agritech startup that has raised hundreds of millions of dollars appears to be a massive scam. The company, called eFishery, reportedly told investors including SoftBank that it had revenue of $752 million for the nine months to September last year when the real amount was actually $157 million. This means that its revenue was 75% less than what it delivered. You can call it pescatarian Ponzi.

eFishery says its mission is to meet the growing global demand for animal protein by modernizing Indonesia’s fishing industry. eFishery develops end-to-end technology for fish farmers, from internet-connected smart feeders to a mobile app where farmers can sell their crop. Shrimp in particular is… Very high percentage of proteinThe thinking was that fish farmers in Indonesia could use modern technology to increase production and supply a growing world population.

Unfortunately, it didn’t seem like many fisheries wanted what eFishery was selling: “While eFishery said it had more than 400,000 fish feeders in operation with customers.” Bloomberg “Initial investigations estimate their number was only about 24,000,” he wrote. eFishery has been in business since 2013.

Bloomberg previously I mentioned regarding alleged fish fraud, which came to light after a whistleblower contacted the eFishery board with claims that its figures were inaccurate. Besides the huge discrepancy in revenues, the company’s leadership told investors that it had made $16 million in profits for a nine-month period when it actually lost $35.4 million.

eFishery’s CEO was fired after a board investigation quickly revealed accounting discrepancies. The investigation is reportedly still ongoing Bloombergbut it looks like someone is about to get it Treatment of Elizabeth Holmes.

What are the chances that the founders of eFishery were inspired by 4chan?

eFishery has lost more than $152 million since its inception, according to the investigation. Fortunately, its backers include companies like G42, an artificial intelligence company controlled by the UAE. This means they will be fine.