According to US authorities, Arthur Hayes, the co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX, should serve more than a year in prison for violating anti-money laundering rules. The court is expected to sentence him to six months to a year in federal prison.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charged BitMEX Co-Founders Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed with failing to build and maintain an anti-money laundering programme in October 2020. According to the prosecutors, the executives’ conduct turned the trading venue into a “money-laundering platform.”
Following the filing of the cases, BitMEX was fined $100 million and the co-founders were forced to resign.
Hayes pleaded guilty to the allegations against him in February of this year, potentially reducing his prison sentence to six to 12 months. He also agreed to pay a fine of $10 million. However, US authorities believe that this punishment is insufficiently severe. Given the infractions he committed, Hayes deserves to spend more than a year in federal prison.
Hayes’ lawyers, for their part, insisted that their client not be allowed to see the inside of the prison cell and that he be allowed to travel freely abroad. They claimed that this case will serve as a tipping point for future violations and will aid the US government in the investigation of monetary crimes involving crypto platforms.
Hayes should not go to prison, according to the Probation Office, which recommends two years of probation.
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