Dragon Money Seeds Fake News in Telegram Channels

iGaming operator Dragon Money has been seeding fabricated news stories across Telegram channels, imitating publications from The Athletic and MMA Fighting, as well as a fake post attributed to investor Robert Kiyosaki on X, to promote its own home giveaway promotion.

The operator tailored a distinct narrative for each targeted audience, each mentioning the brand directly. In football-focused channels, the fabricated story built on the summer transfer saga involving Atlético Madrid forward Julián Álvarez, falsely claiming he used the operator's product to earn funds toward a release clause payment for a move to Barcelona. In crypto-focused channels, the fake story claimed Robert Kiyosaki sold all of his cryptocurrency holdings to make a deposit with the operator, which he supposedly described as the best way to invest in real estate. In MMA-focused channels, the fabricated narrative claimed UFC president Dana White had banned fighters from using the operator due to its ongoing housing giveaway promotion.

The campaign illustrates the use of fabricated news content and false celebrity endorsements as a marketing tactic to drive engagement and credibility for gambling promotions within niche Telegram communities, exploiting recognizable names and current events to lend false authenticity to promotional messaging distributed outside traditional advertising channels.