{"id":112485,"date":"2024-10-10T10:17:47","date_gmt":"2024-10-10T03:17:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=112485"},"modified":"2024-10-10T10:17:47","modified_gmt":"2024-10-10T03:17:47","slug":"us-charges-3-companies-15-people-with-cryptocurrency-fraud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=112485","title":{"rendered":"US charges 3 companies, 15 people with cryptocurrency fraud"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>BOSTON, Oct 9 (Reuters) &#8211; Three cryptocurrency companies and 15 people have been charged with engaging in widespread fraud and market manipulation following an investigation in which the FBI for the first time directed the creation of a new digital token to help authorities ferret out crime.<\/p>\n<p>Federal prosecutors in Boston charged the firms Gotbit, ZM Quant, CLS Global and the leaders and employees of those and other companies in a takedown that has led to four arrests, agreements by five people to plead guilty and the seizure of over $25 million worth of cryptocurrency.<\/p>\n<p>Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said the defendants engaged in sham trades to artificially inflate the trading volume of various cryptocurrency tokens before selling them off, &#8220;leaving innocent investors holding the bag.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This is a case where new age technology, crypto, meets an old school fraud, in this case a &#8216;pump and dump&#8217; scheme, which is as old as the stock markets,&#8221; Levy told reporters.<\/p>\n<p>As part of the investigation, the FBI directed the creation of a cryptocurrency company, NexFundAI, which had a token on the Ethereum blockchain that prosecutors said ZM Quant, CLS Global and another company, MyTrade, agreed to help manipulate.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities said that token was traded but that they carefully monitored to minimize the risk retail investors might buy it before disabling trading. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed related civil cases as well.<\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors said that Saitama, the largest of the companies involved, at one point had a market value of $7.5 billion, after its leadership began manipulating trading of its tokens and secretly sold them.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"paragraph-7\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__dark-grey__3Ml43 text__regular__2N1Xr text__small__1kGq2 body__full_width__ekUdw body__small_body__2vQyf article-body__paragraph__2-BtD\">Its chief executive, <a data-testid=\"Link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/fingfx.thomsonreuters.com\/gfx\/legaldocs\/gdpzkynbkvw\/10092024crypto_kohli.pdf\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__inherit-color__3208F text__inherit-font__1Y8w3 text__inherit-size__1DZJi link__link__3Ji6W link__underline_default__2prE_ link__with-icon__3x3oD\">Manpreet Kohli<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 32 32\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" role=\"presentation\" data-testid=\"NewTabSymbol\" class=\"link__new-tab-symbol__3T19s\"><path fill=\"#666\" d=\"M15 6c.6 0 1 .4 1 1s-.4 1-1 1H9c-.6 0-1 .4-1 1v14a1.1 1.1 0 0 0 .2.6c.1.2.4.4.8.4h14c.6 0 1-.4 1-1v-6c0-.6.4-1 1-1s1 .4 1 1v6a3 3 0 0 1-3 3H9a3 3 0 0 1-2.2-.9A3 3 0 0 1 6 23V9a3 3 0 0 1 3-3Zm10 0 .4.1.5.5.1.4v6c0 .6-.4 1-1 1s-1-.4-1-1V9.4l-5.3 5.3a1 1 0 0 1-.7.3 1 1 0 0 1-.7-.3 1 1 0 0 1 0-1.4L22.6 8H19c-.6 0-1-.4-1-1s.4-1 1-1Z\"\/><\/svg><span style=\"border:0;clip:rect(0 0 0 0);clip-path:inset(50%);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px;white-space:nowrap\">, opens new tab<\/span><\/a>, was arrested on Monday in the United Kingdom. Five other current or former employees were also charged, and three have pleaded guilty.<\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"paragraph-8\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__dark-grey__3Ml43 text__regular__2N1Xr text__small__1kGq2 body__full_width__ekUdw body__small_body__2vQyf article-body__paragraph__2-BtD\">Others <a data-testid=\"Link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/fingfx.thomsonreuters.com\/gfx\/legaldocs\/gdvzkynnbpw\/10192024crypto_andriunin.pdf\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__inherit-color__3208F text__inherit-font__1Y8w3 text__inherit-size__1DZJi link__link__3Ji6W link__underline_default__2prE_ link__with-icon__3x3oD\">charged<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 32 32\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" role=\"presentation\" data-testid=\"NewTabSymbol\" class=\"link__new-tab-symbol__3T19s\"><path fill=\"#666\" d=\"M15 6c.6 0 1 .4 1 1s-.4 1-1 1H9c-.6 0-1 .4-1 1v14a1.1 1.1 0 0 0 .2.6c.1.2.4.4.8.4h14c.6 0 1-.4 1-1v-6c0-.6.4-1 1-1s1 .4 1 1v6a3 3 0 0 1-3 3H9a3 3 0 0 1-2.2-.9A3 3 0 0 1 6 23V9a3 3 0 0 1 3-3Zm10 0 .4.1.5.5.1.4v6c0 .6-.4 1-1 1s-1-.4-1-1V9.4l-5.3 5.3a1 1 0 0 1-.7.3 1 1 0 0 1-.7-.3 1 1 0 0 1 0-1.4L22.6 8H19c-.6 0-1-.4-1-1s.4-1 1-1Z\"\/><\/svg><span style=\"border:0;clip:rect(0 0 0 0);clip-path:inset(50%);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px;white-space:nowrap\">, opens new tab<\/span><\/a> were Aleksei Andriunin, CEO of Gotbit, a cryptocurrency &#8220;market maker&#8221; who lived in Russia and Portugal. He was arrested in Portugal on Tuesday. Two of his company&#8217;s employees in Russia were also charged.<\/div>\n<p>Prosecutors said that from 2018 to 2024, Gotbit engaged in &#8220;wash trading,&#8221; a form of sham trading, and market manipulation on behalf of several cryptocurrency clients to help artificially inflate trading volume for their tokens.<\/p>\n<p>Also charged were four other individuals who worked at cryptocurrency &#8220;market makers&#8221; that prosecutors said advertised market manipulation services to clients.<\/p>\n<p>They are Liu Zhou, the founder of market maker MyTrade, who according to court papers has agreed to plead guilty; Riqui Liu of the United Kingdom and Hong Kong and Baijun Ou of Hong Kong, who both worked at ZM Quant; and Andrey Zhorzhes of the United Arab Emirates, an employee of CLS Global.<\/p>\n<p>They could not be immediately reached for comment.<\/p>\n<p>Others charged were Michael Thompson of Virginia, who worked at a cryptocurrency company called VZZN founded by a former Saitama employee, and Bradley Beatty of Florida, who prosecutors said fraudulently promoted his crypto company, Lillian Finance.<\/p>\n<p data-testid=\"promo-box\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__dark-grey__3Ml43 text__regular__2N1Xr text__small__1kGq2 body__base__22dCE body__small_body__2vQyf article-body__promo-box__3bCm_\"> Sign up <!-- --> <a data-testid=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/us-charges-18-people-companies-cryptocurrency-fraud-2024-10-09\/undefined?location=article-paragraph\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__inherit-color__3208F text__inherit-font__1Y8w3 text__inherit-size__1DZJi link__link__3Ji6W link__underline_default__2prE_\">here.<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body__element__2p5pI\">\n<p data-testid=\"Body\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__dark-grey__3Ml43 text__regular__2N1Xr text__extra_small__1Mw6v body__full_width__ekUdw body__extra_small_body__3QTYe sign-off__text__PU3Aj sign-off__no-margin-top__2e9N-\">Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Leslie Adler, David Gregorio and Richard Chang<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p data-testid=\"Body\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__dark-grey__3Ml43 text__regular__2N1Xr text__small__1kGq2 body__base__22dCE body__small_body__2vQyf article-body__element__2p5pI article-body__trust-badge__D_brm\">Our Standards: <a data-testid=\"Link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thomsonreuters.com\/en\/about-us\/trust-principles.html\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__dark-grey__3Ml43 text__medium__1kbOh text__small__1kGq2 link__link__3Ji6W link__underline_default__2prE_ link__with-icon__3x3oD\">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 32 32\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" role=\"presentation\" data-testid=\"NewTabSymbol\" class=\"link__new-tab-symbol__3T19s\"><path fill=\"#666\" d=\"M15 6c.6 0 1 .4 1 1s-.4 1-1 1H9c-.6 0-1 .4-1 1v14a1.1 1.1 0 0 0 .2.6c.1.2.4.4.8.4h14c.6 0 1-.4 1-1v-6c0-.6.4-1 1-1s1 .4 1 1v6a3 3 0 0 1-3 3H9a3 3 0 0 1-2.2-.9A3 3 0 0 1 6 23V9a3 3 0 0 1 3-3Zm10 0 .4.1.5.5.1.4v6c0 .6-.4 1-1 1s-1-.4-1-1V9.4l-5.3 5.3a1 1 0 0 1-.7.3 1 1 0 0 1-.7-.3 1 1 0 0 1 0-1.4L22.6 8H19c-.6 0-1-.4-1-1s.4-1 1-1Z\"\/><\/svg><span style=\"border:0;clip:rect(0 0 0 0);clip-path:inset(50%);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px;white-space:nowrap\">, opens new tab<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body__row__dFOPA article-body__element__2p5pI\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reutersagency.com\/en\/licensereuterscontent\/?utm_medium=rcom-article-media&amp;utm_campaign=rcom-rcp-lead\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"button__link__uTGln button__secondary__18moI button__round__1nYLA button__w_auto__6WYRo\" data-testid=\"LicenceContentButton\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"button__container__3sgvk license-content-button__button__3okgd\"><span data-testid=\"Text\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__inherit-color__3208F text__regular__2N1Xr text__body_fixed__1I7Al license-content-button__text__3XBrA\">Purchase Licensing Rights<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"AuthorBio\" class=\"article-body__element__2p5pI\">\n<address class=\"author-bio__author-card__3h9uA\">\n<div class=\"author-bio__author-wrapper__3HHLV\"><a class=\"author-bio__author-image__3uDqF\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/authors\/nate-raymond\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\"><\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"Image\" class=\"author-bio__image__1d0O-\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/arc-authors\/reuters\/12ff96eb-dca5-42fb-a5a9-f690563e55b7.png\"\/><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<p data-testid=\"Body\" class=\"text__text__1FZLe text__dark-grey__3Ml43 text__regular__2N1Xr text__small__1kGq2 body__base__22dCE body__small_body__2vQyf author-bio__description__3uv33\" style=\"font-size:16px\">Nate Raymond reports on the federal judiciary and litigation. He can be reached at nate.raymond@thomsonreuters.com.<\/p>\n<\/address>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1660802\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/us-charges-18-people-companies-cryptocurrency-fraud-2024-10-09\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BOSTON, Oct 9 (Reuters) &#8211; Three cryptocurrency companies and 15 people have been charged with engaging in widespread fraud and market manipulation following an investigation in which the FBI for &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=112485\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-112485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=112485"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112485\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=112485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=112485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=112485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}