There is something fishy about this Fish Tech startup

An Indonesian agricultural technology company that raised hundreds of millions of dollars appears to be a huge scam. The company, called eFishery, reportedly told investors including SoftBank that it had revenue of $752 million in the nine months to September last year, when the real figure was actually $157 million. This means that his income was 75% lower than presented. You could call it a 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 harvest. Shrimp in particular are fairly high protein contentand the thinking was that Indonesia’s fish farmers could use modern technology to increase yields and supply a growing world population.

Alas, it seems not many anglers wanted what eFishery was selling: “While eFishery said it has over 400,000 fish feeders in operation with customers,” Bloomberg says, “initial investigations estimate there are only about 24,000.” eFishery has been in business since 2013.

Bloomberg earlier reported about the alleged fish scam, which came to light after a whistleblower approached the eFishery board with allegations that its numbers were inaccurate. In addition to the huge revenue discrepancy, the company’s management told investors that it made a profit of $16 million in a nine-month period, when in fact it lost $35.4 million.

eFishery’s CEO was fired after a board investigation quickly uncovered accounting irregularities. The investigation is ongoing, according to Bloombergbut it looks like someone is about to get one Treatment of Elizabeth Holmes.

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

According to the investigation, eFishery has lost more than $152 million since its inception. Fortunately, its backers include G42, an artificial intelligence firm controlled by the United Arab Emirates. Which is to say, they’ll be fine.