The Australian anti-money laundering watchdog has suspended the registrations of two cryptocurrency exchanges in connection with a drug trafficking case, the agency announced in a press release on Friday, March 8. The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) — a government financial intelligence agency that aims to prevent money laundering, tax evasion, welfare fraud and terrorism — suspended the two crypto exchanges’ operations because of their association with a suspect in an alleged organized crime syndicate. According to the joint press release from AUSTRAC and the Australian Federal Police, a 27-year-old man has been arrested on several drug trafficking-related …
A securities regulator in the United States, the Texas State Securities Board (TSSB), has detected another batch of alleged cryptocurrency scams. On Sept. 3, Texas Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles entered an Emergency Cease and Desist Order against two alleged crypto scam schemes known as Forex Birds and PEK Universe. The published order names Kumar Babu Bondesi and Darwin Eric Balusek as the alleged operators of the schemes. According to the TSSB, Balusek is also known under the nickname “Bitcoin Pope.” Operating abroad, the respondents are accused of fraudulent securities offerings tied to foreign exchange (forex) and cryptocurrencies, the authority …
The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) launched action against a reportedly fraudulent $147 million bitcoin (BTC) scheme, the regulator announced on June 18. On June 17, the CFTC filed a complaint with the New York Southern District Court against now-defunct United Kingdom-based entity Control-Finance Ltd, which defrauded more than 1,000 investors to launder at least 22,858 bitcoin. The CFTC also brings actions against the entity’s head, Benjamin Reynolds, stating that Control-Finance and Reynolds “exploited public enthusiasm for Bitcoin” from May 1, 2017, to October 31, 2017. The action seeks civil monetary penalties, including “permanent trading and registration bans, …
The founder of what reportedly claims to be Australia’s first online mattress retailer OzMattress and cryptocurrency fund manager Stefanos Papanastasiou is about to be brought to court by his clients over the loss of over AUD$20 million ($14.2 million). Daily Australian newspaper The Age reported about the controversy on March 19. Per the report, Papanastasiou told his clients in 2017 that he had spent half a million Australian dollars ($355,000) to develop an algorithm that delivers substantial returns through the trading of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH)-based tokens. According to the claim filed by property developer Savvas Alexiadis, one of …
The South Korean Supreme Prosecutors' Office (SPO) has announced the establishment of a task force to fight cryptocurrency-related fraud and crimes. The development was reported by the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS), one of the largest national public broadcasters, in an article published on Tuesday, March 5. The new task force will be responsible for the investigation — under the SPO’s authority — of fraud, illegal money laundering, crimes and other illegal activities within the fields of fintech and cryptocurrency. The decision to create a special task force is a response to the significantly increasing number of fraud cases and crimes …