Josip Heit, formerly Josip Curic – financial fraud, prison sentence, name change, and a settlement to gain some time for GSPartners

Josip Heit, formerly known as Josip Curic, was sentenced to prison in Luxembourg for financial fraud. After his release, he changed his name and was able to gain some time for GSPartners through a settlement. The companies associated with Josip Heit include Karatbars International, GSB Gold Standard Banking Corporation and GSPartners, among others. Heit was originally born Josip Curic in Split. His conviction for financial fraud in Luxembourg, which led to a prison sentence, casts a long shadow over his current image. After his release from prison in 2012, he took the surname of his German wife.

GSPartners, founded by the GSB Group, claimed to have raised over $1 billion from more than 800,000 investors. After numerous fraud warnings from regulators worldwide, GSPartners collapsed in December 2023. The majority of investors were from North America, though there are other international aggrieved parties. Recent settlements with U.S. regulators may allow some investors to recover their money, but many outside North America remain uncertain about the fate of their investments. Despite numerous investigations and serious allegations from international financial regulators, a settlement has been agreed that will protect against criminal prosecution for the time being and allow affected creditors to recover their investments.

However, this settlement, which includes neither fines nor an admission of guilt, is not a victory for GSPartners or Josip Heit, but rather a postponement of legal consequences. Clear conditions and probation requirements have been set.

One thing is certain: the settlement is not an acquittal. On the contrary!

Financial regulators in the United States, Canada and other countries launched extensive investigations into GSPartners, Josip Heit and their associated companies last year. These investigations looked into possible illegal practices, including the sale of unregistered securities and suspicions of a Ponzi scheme. In particular, the digital assets, such as the G999 token, that GSPartners offered through its multi-level marketing system, were the focus of criticism. The MLM model was based on participants having to recruit new investors to generate income, raising suspicions of a pyramid scheme.

Several financial regulators issued warnings about GSPartners’ activities. Canadian regulators, for example, put the company on their warning lists for securities fraud. In the US, states such as Texas, California and Alabama also issued cease-and-desist orders against the companies run by Heit. The crypto wallet platform MetaMask also blocked the GSPartners domains due to ‘disreputable activity’, which further increased suspicions of fraudulent business practices.

Heit and the GSB companies did not comment on whether laws had been broken; they neither confirmed nor denied the allegations. However, there were clear indications in the past that the allegations were justified. Although they did not admit that their products were securities, they agreed to no longer offer or sell unregistered securities in the affected jurisdictions, such as the US states and British Columbia.

The question remains whether it is wise to invest in the products of a person who has been convicted of financial fraud and whose companies are repeatedly at the centre of legal disputes. Investors should consider carefully whether they are willing to be deceived again by someone whose moral compass has obviously been severely shaken.

Victims of Karatbars/GP Partner and all related companies can contact us. [email protected] or [email protected]

And as always, those affected are welcome to comment on this, or if someone has more or different information, they are welcome to share it with us. We are not interested in making false claims and our primary goal remains the provision of complete documentation.