Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have charged Taj Tarsha, the 34-year-old Miami founder of NFT marketplace startup Few and Far, with securities fraud and wire fraud, alleging he siphoned millions of dollars raised from investors to fund online casino gambling, cryptocurrency speculation, and his own lifestyle. The indictment, unsealed this week, accuses Tarsha of promising backers a working digital token marketplace while quietly funneling their money elsewhere.
According to the US Attorney SDNY, Tarsha was indicted on one count of securities fraud and one count of wire fraud, each carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The case, filed under docket 1:26-mj-02163, has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan. Prosecutors say that beginning in February 2022, Tarsha solicited investments in Few and Far Limited through Simple Agreements for Future Tokens, ultimately raising more than $10 million from at least 67 investors in exchange for rights to roughly 95 million FAR tokens.
Tarsha was first arrested on June 6 and released five days later on a $500,000 unsecured personal recognizance bond in SDNY Magistrates Court, according to Inner City Press. He is represented by law firm Reed Smith LLP, the outlet reported, and the underlying complaint had remained temporarily under seal during initial presentment negotiations.
Casino Runs, Crypto Bets, and a Miami Mortgage
Prosecutors allege that instead of building the Few and Far platform, Tarsha diverted investor money toward online casino gambling, speculative cryptocurrency purchases, mortgage payments on a Miami apartment, interior design services, and his personal DJ pursuits, according to Binance News. Offering documents had told investors their funds would be used exclusively to build the Few and Far marketplace, per the same report.
The indictment also states that Tarsha siphoned nearly $1 million from company funds through two undisclosed bonuses and inflated executive compensation. He allegedly acknowledged internally that his salary was unreasonable for a company with no product and zero revenue, and the bonus payments were reportedly kept hidden from both investors and a company co-founder.
An Audit, a Cover Story, and a Skeleton Crew
A June 2023 audit uncovered the fund irregularities, and Tarsha allegedly responded by giving investors false explanations claiming the spending aligned with company goals. He then fired nearly all of the staff, retaining a single contractor to maintain the appearance that platform development was still underway, per the indictment.
When the FAR token finally launched in May 2024, more than two years after fundraising began, its market value plummeted by more than 99% from its offering price, according to Inner City Press. Trading in the token effectively ceased soon after, the outlet reported.
From Pantera-Backed Startup to Federal Indictment
Few and Far was founded in 2022 by Chris Gale, Taj Tarsha, and Chris Hayes, and by March 2023 the company had announced a $10.5 million seed funding round led by venture capital firm Pantera Capital, with participation from Cypher Capital, Hypersphere, and K5 Global, according to Silicon Canals. The funding was meant to build an NFT marketplace on the NEAR Protocol.
Regulators Say Crypto Presales Aren't Exempt From Fraud Law
In announcing the indictment, federal officials emphasized that fundraising for cryptocurrency startups through token presales does not exempt creators from traditional federal securities laws or disclosure requirements, per KuCoin News. Prosecutors stressed that investors in digital asset startups are legally entitled to truthful disclosures about how their money is used.
The case builds on a string of federal prosecutions targeting digital asset fraud in New York, including the June 2022 US Attorney SDNY indictment of former OpenSea product manager Nathaniel Chastain on wire fraud charges. Federal prosecutors in New York have increasingly relied on traditional wire fraud statutes to police NFT and token marketplaces.
It's not the first time a New York-based digital asset founder has faced this kind of scrutiny — Hoodline previously covered a similar Brooklyn fraud case involving fund manager Kanen Flowers in 2024. That case, like Tarsha's, centered on allegations that investor money meant for a fund's operations was instead used for personal benefit.
Unanswered Questions as the Case Moves Forward
Several questions remain unresolved as the case moves forward, including whether Few and Far's co-founders or its institutional venture backers will face civil recovery lawsuits, and how much of investors' money might ultimately be recovered through federal forfeiture proceedings. It's also unclear how Tarsha's defense team at Reed Smith LLP plans to respond to the charges before Judge Kaplan.
