Complaints for breach of trust and fraud were filed last year, particularly against Marc Blata. The influencer finally answered questions from the Cash survey about France 2.
After nine months of discussions, the cash investigation teams’ patience finally paid off. Influencer Marc Blata, known for his controversial copycat methods from Dubai, finally agreed to participate in the latest episode of the France 2 show this Thursday, April 4, dedicated to false promises of money from influencers.
In a tense exchange with journalist Elise Lucet, the influencer was questioned about the two investigations that the prosecutor’s office in Paris had launched in June for organized gang fraud and breach of trust.
The influencer and his wife, Nadé, are actually named in the complaints filed by the AVI collective, which fights influencers accused of fraud. Dozens of complainants consider themselves victims of the couple, who they say boasted of copycat, deceptive business practices.
At the heart of the matter is Blatagang, a “copy-trading” project that would make it possible, thanks to signals, to reproduce the activity of an experienced trader and thus generate profits. The controversial influencer, who at the time was followed by 4.2 million subscribers on Instagram, would have used his fame on social networks to encourage his community to bet on very risky financial markets. His saying: “Copy, paste, cash”. Problem: the influencer based in Dubai did not inform his subscribers about the risks associated with this practice, hidden behind catchy phrases.
“A lot of people supported me in the project”
“Quite a few people followed me in this project, but under 10,000 is a certainty,” explains Marc Blata. “To this day, I think I speak to a savvy audience that has the full capacity of their brain. The people I speak to look like me. We are a reflection of what we look at,” defends the influencer.
“People complain about having lost money,” Elise Lucet replies to Marc Blata. “It annoys me too to know that chocolate makes you gain weight and yet it’s so good. I lost money, everyone loses money. Copy trading can make you a lot of money, but it can also make you to lose some, ” insists the influencer.
In total, more than 80 plaintiffs claim to have been duped by the influencer pair. A subscriber would have lost almost 30,000 euros by following the influencer’s advice. “He’s an idiot,” Marc Blata replies simply. “You have 30,000 euros, why don’t you put them in an apartment. I don’t choose my subscribers,” he continues.
2 million euros in earnings thanks to trading
“There’s reportedly a complaint from about a hundred people. 100 losers out of 3,000 winners, ratio not enough for you?” he adds.
Asked about his income via trading, Marc Blata remains vague. “In connection, I earned several hundred thousand euros. And thanks to trading, about two million euros.”
“I know what I did and I didn’t do anything. I will answer to the people who have the competent authority,” the influencer concludes. Since the revelation of this affair, known as “influvoleurs”, Marc and Nadé Blata have not varied in their statements, claiming not to be the cause of any fraud. “Everything I do is legal,” Marc Blata already insisted to BFMTV in January 2023.
Since then, the Dubai-based influencer has filed a defamation complaint against X and against the AVI collective.