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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →In September 2014, at the Federal Trade Commission’s request, a federal court in Missouri halted Butterfly Labs, a Bitcoin-mining hardware seller. The FTC alleged that the company took customers’ money for mining computers it did not deliver—or delivered too late to be useful—and for prepaid mining services it did not provide. Those were civil allegations, not a criminal conviction. In 2016, the company and two individuals agreed to settle the FTC’s charges.
What the FTC alleged in 2014
The FTC announced on September 23, 2014, that a federal court had halted BF Labs, Inc., which did business as Butterfly Labs. According to the agency’s complaint, customers paid thousands of dollars for specialized computers intended to mine Bitcoin. The company allegedly failed to deliver many machines, or delivered them only after delays had made them practically useless for mining. The complaint also alleged that customers paid in advance for mining services they did not receive. The FTC’s 2014 announcement describes the allegations and the requested court action.
The agency reported that more than 20,000 consumers had not received computers as of September 2013. It said BitForce machines were listed at prices from $149 to $29,899, and that few, if any, machines in the newer Monarch line had been delivered by August 2014. These are figures the FTC reported about the complaint-era business; they should not be read as independently audited totals.
What “shut down” means in this case
The court’s September 2014 action was an interim halt while the civil case proceeded—not a criminal conviction or a final finding that every allegation was true. The FTC docket identifies the case as Federal Trade Commission v. BF Labs, Inc. et al., civil action 4:14-cv-00815-BCW, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri. The docket records the complaint and temporary restraining order in September 2014, an amended complaint in May 2015, and proposed settlement orders in February 2016. The FTC case docket provides the procedural timeline.
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What changed under the 2016 settlement
On February 18, 2016, the FTC announced that BF Labs, Sonny Vleisides, and Darla Drake had agreed to settle the agency’s charges. The settlement orders prohibited specified misrepresentations about whether a product or service could generate virtual currency, when it would be delivered, and whether a product was new or used. BF Labs and Vleisides were also barred from accepting advance payment for mining products unless the products were available and could be delivered within 30 days. If they failed to deliver within that period, they had to provide a refund. The FTC’s settlement announcement sets out the terms.
The announcement described partially suspended monetary judgments of $38,615,161 against BF Labs and Vleisides, subject to payments of $15,000 by the company and $4,000 by Vleisides. It also described a partially suspended $135,878 judgment against Drake, suspended upon her surrender of the cash value of Bitcoins she obtained using company machines. The FTC said stipulated final orders have the force of law when approved and signed by the district court judge.
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Those judgment figures do not establish how much customers ultimately received. The FTC announcement describes the judgments and their conditions, but does not establish an aggregate amount of refunds distributed to consumers.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why the distinction matters
The case concerned alleged failures involving two different purchases: mining hardware and prepaid mining services. The later settlement addressed both the truthfulness of product claims and the conditions under which the company and Vleisides could take advance payments. Jessica Rich, then director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in the 2016 announcement: “Even in the fast-moving world of virtual currencies like Bitcoin, companies can’t deceive people about their products.”
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Calling the episode an alleged scam reflects the consumer-protection allegations behind the original headline, but the legal record described here is an FTC civil case and settlement—not a criminal prosecution or conviction. The FTC’s complaint states its allegations; the 2016 settlement records the agreed restrictions and judgments.
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