U.S. authorities are taking concerted action against a number of crypto companies and individuals.
Three crypto companies and 15 individuals have been charged with market manipulation and fraud, among other charges, following investigations by the FBI, DOJ, and SEC.
For the time being, the FBI has relied on minting its own crypto token: the “NextFundAI” token.
Prosecutors in Boston have filed charges against the companies Gotbit, ZM Quant, CLS Global as well as against executives and employees of these and other companies.
The action led to four arrests. In addition, five people agreed to plead guilty.
- In addition, over $25 million worth of cryptocurrencies were seized.
- The prosecutor in charge, Joshua Levy, speaks of bogus transactions and market manipulation to artificially inflate the value of various tokens. Then the tokens were sold. In the manner of pump-and-dump schemes.
On its website, Gotbit openly advertises the “execution of a customized growth strategy for your token.” The primary goal is to “create buying pressure in your market.”
- The authorities have apparently taken this as an opportunity to start investigations into market manipulation.
- As part of the investigation, the FBI initiated the creation of a crypto company called NextFundAI and launched its own token on Ethereum.
The accused companies allegedly participated in the manipulation of the token – and thus fell into the net of the investigators.
- The largest company allegedly involved: the USD 7.5 billion company Saitama.
- Managing director Manpreet Kohli was arrested in Great Britain on Monday. In addition, charges were brought against five other current or former employees, three of whom pleaded guilty.
Also charged was Aleksei Andriunin, the CEO of Gotbit, an entrepreneur working as a market maker. Andriunin, who lived in Russia and Portugal, was arrested in Portugal on Tuesday.
- The authorities also accuse Gotbit of wash trading.
image: ID 43256538 © Raghuramaswamy | Dreamstime.com
[newsletter_form lists="1"]
