An online pastor and his wife were ordered to pay $3.4 million in restitution after they peddled cryptocurrency to their followers in Colorado.
Eligio “Eli” Regalado and his wife, Kaitlyn Regalado, committed securities fraud and broke the Colorado Securities Act, according to a Sept. 16 news release from the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies.
The decision on the restitution amount, which was issued on Sept. 12, followed a three-day bench trial that lasted from May 5-8.
Between June 2022 and April 2023, their digital asset known as INDXcoin brought in $3.4 million from over 300 people, with the news release saying that the couple “targeted Christian communities in Denver and made numerous misrepresentations and omissions to lure investors.”
Even though the Regalados had no experience with cryptocurrency, they promised INDXcoin would be a “low-risk, high-profit investment.”
An auditor they had hired nevertheless gave their project a security code score of 0 out of 10.
🚨 CRYPTO SCAM CLOAKED IN FAITH: DENVER PASTOR INDICTED
Denver pastor Eligio Regalado and his wife Kaitlyn face 40 criminal counts after allegedly defrauding their congregation of $3.4M through a worthless crypto called INDXcoin, claiming divine instruction while funding luxury… pic.twitter.com/zoFojKulW1
— The Tradesman (@The_Tradesman1) August 15, 2025
The Regalados said the assets could be traded on an online exchange they created known as Kingdom Wealth Exchange, which ultimately “collapsed after a day of trading.”
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Eli Regalado said in a YouTube video that “the charges are that me and Kaitlyn pocketed $1.3 million … I just wanted to come out and say those charges are true.”
Beyond merely pocketing the funds, the Regalados “had no other source of income at the time and used investor money to fund a lavish lifestyle that included jewelry, luxury ski and yachting trips, designer clothes, dental work and even a Range Rover,” the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies added in the release.
Eli Regalado also confessed in the video that he used investor funds to pay down his outstanding taxes and start a “home remodel the Lord told us to do.”
The video went viral and drew worldwide attention to the fraud.
Colorado Securities Commissioner Tung Chan said, “The Regalados are 21st century false prophets who leveraged the new and promising technology of cryptocurrencies to run an old-fashioned scam, victimizing their own congregants and others.”
“The Colorado Securities Division works hard to prosecute securities fraud throughout the state,” the official added.
“This case of a local pastor scamming Coloradans right here in our cities and towns is the kind of case that shows why we need state regulators on our home front who will fight for small investors, the regular people who are just trying to pay bills, save for retirement, put food on the table,” Chan continued.
“The cryptocurrency market has expanded to over $4 trillion and with it come scammers. When crypto frauds are hitting home, that’s where we are. The Court’s holding is a win for Colorado investors, for justice and fair play, and for every legitimate cryptocurrency project out there. We are proud to be part of this work.”
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