The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reached a settlement agreement with cryptocurrency trading platform Bittrex and its former CEO William Shihara over allegations of operating an unregistered exchange. Bittrex and Bittrex Global have agreed to pay $14.4 million in disgorgement, $4 million in prejudgment interest, and $5.6 million in civil penalties, subject to court approval. The SEC had filed a complaint in April claiming that Bittrex and Shihara operated an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. The settlement highlights the SEC's focus on the economic realities of crypto offerings and the need to protect investors.
Crypto exchange Bittrex has reached a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over charges of offering unregistered securities to U.S. investors. As part of the settlement, Bittrex will pay a $24 million fine within two months of filing a liquidation plan for the exchange. The SEC alleged that Bittrex operated as a securities exchange, broker, and clearinghouse without proper registration. Bittrex neither admitted nor denied the allegations but agreed not to make any public statements suggesting the SEC lacked a factual basis for its claims. The fine includes disgorgement, prejudgment interest, and civil money penalties. Bittrex has until 90 days after its liquidation plan is effective to pay the SEC, with the regulator reserving the right to seek court judgment if payment is not made by March 1, 2023.
Crypto asset trading platform Bittrex Inc. and its former CEO, William Shihara, have agreed to settle charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for operating an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. Bittrex's foreign affiliate, Bittrex Global GmbH, also settled charges for failing to register as a national securities exchange. The SEC alleged that Bittrex provided services to U.S. investors in connection with crypto assets that were offered and sold as securities, and that Shihara directed issuers to remove certain statements that could trigger regulatory scrutiny. As part of the settlement, Bittrex and Shihara will pay a total of $24 million in disgorgement, prejudgment interest, and civil penalties.
Bittrex has filed a motion to dismiss the legal dispute with the SEC, arguing that the SEC lacks the authority to regulate cryptocurrencies as securities unless explicitly granted by Congress. Bittrex aligns its arguments with Coinbase, asserting that assets traded on secondary markets should be considered commodities or other digital assets, not securities. The exchange also claims that the SEC did not adequately communicate that its actions were prohibited. Bittrex's motion to dismiss follows the SEC's charges against the exchange for running an unregistered national securities exchange.
Bittrex, a major cryptocurrency exchange, has decided to contest the SEC's complaint against it, with the support of legal experts. The SEC charged Bittrex for operating an unregistered national securities exchange and alleges that the exchange coordinated with issuers to delete problematic statements. Bittrex has filed a motion to dismiss the complaint while also extending support for popular cryptocurrencies, including XRP, ADA, and DOGE, with zero-fee trading. The decision to fight back is seen as a positive development, and Bittrex's defense could set a precedent for other exchanges facing similar challenges from the SEC.
Cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex has filed for bankruptcy protection after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused it of operating an unregistered securities exchange. Bittrex ceased operations in the US on April 30, but its non-US operations in Liechtenstein will not be affected. The company's assets and liabilities were both between $500m and $1bn. Bittrex said it was still holding crypto assets of US customers who did not withdraw funds before April 30, and that it intended to ask the bankruptcy court for a limited re-opening of customer accounts so that the crypto could be distributed back to customers.
Bittrex, the US-based cryptocurrency exchange, has filed for bankruptcy in Delaware, with estimated liabilities and assets both within the $500 million to $1 billion range. The exchange had previously announced it would wind down operations in the US and was sued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in mid-April. Bittrex is the latest crypto entity to file for bankruptcy, joining fellow exchange FTX and a host of lenders like Celsius, Voyager and BlockFi.
Cryptocurrency trading platform Bittrex has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the District of Delaware, estimating it has between $500 million and $1 billion in assets and liabilities. The bankruptcy covers its Seattle-based entity Bittrex, Inc, two Bittrex entities in Malta, and an affiliated entity Desolation Holdings LLC. The declaration followed the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charging the company and its co-founder and former CEO William Shihara for securities violations in April.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has said that the crypto exchange would consider moving away from the US if the regulatory environment for the industry does not become clearer. Armstrong compared the UK situation, where there is only one regulator responsible for both commodities and securities, with the US, where there are separate bodies. Armstrong also spoke of decentralized identity as one of the most compelling use cases for blockchain technology beyond cryptocurrency.
The SEC has categorized six cryptocurrencies as securities in its lawsuit against Bittrex, including Algorand, Dash, Monolith, Naga, Real Estate Protocol, and OMG Network. The agency needs to establish that at least one of the tokens made available by Bittrex is indeed a security, and the inclusion of these tokens in the lawsuit is similar to the SEC's inclusion of coins in other lawsuits without suing the actual tokens themselves. The lack of overlap between coins in different lawsuits could be a result of the SEC not trying to put its eggs all in one basket.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex and its former CEO with operating an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. The SEC alleged that Bittrex earned at least $1.3 billion in revenues from transaction fees from investors while servicing them as a broker, exchange, and clearing agency but failed to register those activities with the SEC. Bittrex has denied the allegations and plans to "vigorously defend" itself in court. The cryptocurrency industry has been lobbying Washington lawmakers and policymakers to avoid falling within the SEC's jurisdiction, but with the collapse of FTX, crypto has faced unprecedented scrutiny.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex and its former CEO William Shihara with operating an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. The SEC alleged that Shihara coordinated with crypto asset issuers seeking to make their tokens available for trading on Bittrex's platform to delete public statements that Shihara believed would lead regulators to investigate those token offerings as securities. Bittrex's foreign affiliate, Bittrex Global GmbH, was also charged for failing to register as a national securities exchange.
The SEC has filed charges against Bittrex, accusing the exchange of failing to comply with securities law by not registering with the financial watchdog in several areas, including as a broker-dealer, exchange, and clearing agency. The lawsuit names Bittrex, Bittrex Global, and former CEO Bill Shihara, alleging the exchange took in at least $1.3 billion in illicit revenue between 2017 and 2022. The SEC's attempt to go after Bittrex represents the latest development in a string of enforcement actions brought by U.S. regulators, targeting several cryptocurrency exchanges so far this year.
The US SEC has charged Bittrex and its co-founder and former CEO William Shihara for operating an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. The SEC argued that six tokens traded on Bittrex are securities. Bittrex had already announced its intention of closing down US operations on April 30 due to the regulatory environment.
The SEC has charged Bittrex and its former CEO for operating an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. Bittrex Global GmbH was also charged for failing to register as a national securities exchange. The complaint alleges that Bittrex coordinated with issuers to delete problematic statements that would lead regulators to investigate the crypto asset as the offering of a security. Bittrex earned at least $1.3 billion in revenues from transaction fees from investors, including U.S. investors, while servicing them as a broker, exchange, and clearing agency without registering any of these activities with the Commission.
