Arthur Hayes BitMEX hit with $100M fine for US money laundering violations

Reports just in show that BitMEX has been hit with a $100 million fine. On Wednesday, Manhattan federal judge John G. Koelt passed the latest verdict against the crypto exchange. This brings an end to the years-long saga over money laundering violations in the United States.

In a Jan. 15 hearing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge John Koeltl passed the sentence on BitMEX, nearly six months after the crypto exchange pleaded guilty to violating the US Bank Secrecy Act by operating without “any meaningful” anti-money laundering program. 

In July 2024, the crypto company referred to the allegations as “old news,” implying that no additional fines were expected. 

BitMEX responds to the court fines

In a statement to its users after the judgment, BitMEX said, “Whilst we are disappointed to learn of the imposition of an additional financial penalty, the amount is substantially less than what the Department of Justice have been pursuing us for over 3 years.”  BitMEX

The exchange’s attorneys maintained that earlier $110 million penalties and previous guilty pleas were adequate punishment for the offenses that took place between 2015 and 2020, but Koeltl disagreed.

According to the crypto exchange, “This process has run on for years, during which the DOJ first asked for over USD 200 million of new money to settle a plea deal – once we refused this ridiculous offer, they then sought a penalty of approximately USD 420 million in the sentencing proceedings.”

BitMEX adds, “Given that the Court has determined an amount substantially below these levels is a justification of our stance and we query whether U.S. taxpayer resources could have been better applied over this period.” 

This is a developing story, and more information will be added as it becomes available.

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