Gasabo Primary Court on Monday, August 19, postponed the bail hearing of Davis Sezisoni Manzi, the founder of the online forex company Billion Traders FX, to August 26.

Manzi faces money laundering, fraud, and illegal foreign exchange trading charges. The decision to adjourn the hearing, originally scheduled for August 19, court heard, is to allow the suspect and his legal representatives ample time to prepare for bail hearing trial.

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Manzi’s lawyer, Stephen Zawadi, told court that they were not ready for the trial, noting that they only learned about the new trial date through the media. Zawadi explained that they had been prepared for a meeting with the victims scheduled for August 20 and were unaware that the pre-trial detention hearing had been moved up from its initial date of September 5.

The prosecution noted that the meeting between the suspect and some of the plaintiffs, originally scheduled for August 20, had been cancelled but may still occur in the future. This change led to the early scheduling of the bail hearing. Prosecution acknowledged that the defense is legally permitted to have sufficient time for preparation and therefore agreed to the postponement.

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Manzi has been in detention since July 30, according to Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB). He is accused of defrauding over $10 million (more than Rwf13 billion) from 500 people through his online foreign exchange trading scheme.

Since 2020, Manzi allegedly solicited investments from individuals, promising a 50 percent profit within five months through his company, Billion Traders FX. Investors were lured by the prospect of receiving $4,000 in monthly dividends, with returns increasing in proportion to their investment.

When the dividends failed to materialize, some investors initiated legal action against Manzi.

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Investigations have revealed that at least 500 people invested in Billion Traders FX. Despite lacking a license for foreign exchange trading, Manzi convinced a significant number of people to invest substantial sums in his company, according to RIB.

If convicted, Manzi faces up to 15 years in prison, along with fines ranging from three to five times the amount involved in the fraud.