As a researcher with a background in finance and experience in following the crypto market, I find this development deeply concerning. The fact that BitMEX, one of the leading cryptocurrency derivatives platforms, has pleaded guilty to violating the US Bank Secrecy Act for around five years is alarming.
BitMEX, a cryptocurrency exchange based in Seychelles, has admitted to breaking the US Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) between 2015 and 2020. For approximately five years, the platform failed to implement any know-your-customer (KYC) procedures, enabling users to join anonymously and engage in transactions. This negligence resulted in a thriving environment for laundering funds derived from illicit activities.
From 2015 to 2020, BitMEX, a prominent global cryptocurrency derivatives platform, was in operation. However, during this period, the company, along with its founders and a long-term employee, confessed in a US federal court in 2022 that they had not complied with essential anti-money laundering regulations as mandated by federal law.
This development is not a surprise, as BitMEX’s founders – Arthur Hayes, Samuel Reed, Benjamin Delo, and their initial employee, Gregory Dwyer – admitted to similar charges from the Department of Justice (DoJ) in the year 2022. The DoJ is determined to leave no stone unturned and ensure that BitMEX is held accountable, with a view to preventing any further evasion of anti-money laundering (AML) regulations within US jurisdiction.
As a researcher examining this situation, I can’t definitively explain why the Department of Justice (DoJ) is revisiting this exchange years after its executives have already been tried and pleaded guilty. However, it’s plausible that the DoJ believes the exchange may have operated outside of U.S. laws without regard, necessitating further investigation and potential prosecution to ensure full accountability.
The Department of Justice’s press statement revealed that senior executives at BITMEX were aware that American customers had been using their trading platform as early as 2018. They also acknowledged that the company’s supposed policies to prevent such activity were ineffective or could be bypassed, allowing BITMEX to generate revenue from the US market without regard for US criminal laws.
The Department of Justice (DoJ) claims that BitMEX deceived an unidentified bank regarding its anti-money laundering (AML) procedures in order to obtain a bank account. Consequently, millions of dollars suspected of being linked to criminal activities were allegedly transferred into the US financial system through this account.
Read More
- W PREDICTION. W cryptocurrency
- AAVE PREDICTION. AAVE cryptocurrency
- PENDLE PREDICTION. PENDLE cryptocurrency
- ZETA PREDICTION. ZETA cryptocurrency
- FutureNet Co-Founder Roman Ziemian Arrested in Montenegro Over $21M Theft
- AEVO PREDICTION. AEVO cryptocurrency
- USD CHF PREDICTION
- CTSI PREDICTION. CTSI cryptocurrency
- NFT PREDICTION. NFT cryptocurrency
- STEEM PREDICTION. STEEM cryptocurrency
2024-07-11 20:56