BitMEX Co-Owner pleaded not guilty after surrendering himself to U.S. authorities in New York on charges of violation of banking laws, failure to establish an anti-money laundering program, negligence in fulfilling the requirements to register to a Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Benjamin Delo along with fellow BitMEX executives Arthur Hayes, Samuel Reed, and BitMEX’s first employee, Greg Dwyer have been charged. BitMEX was co-founded by Delo with Arthur Hayes and Samuel Reed in 2014. Delo, who happens to be an Oxford-educated computer scientist created trading systems for JPMorgan Chase & Co.
According to Bloomberg, Benjamin Delo, who traveled to New York from the U.K., was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah L. Cave during a remote proceeding on Monday. He pleaded not guilty and was released on a $20 million bail bond. The terms of his bail permit him to return to the U.K.
In support of Ben Delo, a spokesperson said in a statement:
The charges are unfounded and an overreach by U.S. authorities, and Delo intends to defend himself against the charges and clear his name in court.
Bitmex is credited with the execution of Bitcoin Perpetual Futures that were easily comprehensible for retail investors, aiding the investors to leverage their bets. The disclosure of the charges in October 2020 made the fellow executives to step down from their respective positions at BitMEX. Alexander Hoptner was appointed as the chief executive officer by the company later in November 2020.
Bloomberg also reported that the four men are each charged with one count of violating the Bank Secrecy Act and one count of conspiring to violate the act, each of which carries a maximum term of five years in prison.
Prosecution officers reported on Arthur Hayes’ present stay in Singapore, who will surrender in Hawaii on April 6. Whereas, Samuel Reed was arrested last year. On the other hand, Gregory Dwyer, a Bermuda-based fellow has no discussions to surrender yet.
Source: Cointelegraph | Bloombergquint
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