- The Securities and Exchange Commission announced a new settlement between them and Bittrex. Bittrex is a crypto exchange charged with violating many regulatory laws made by the commission.
- Apparently, to remove SEC from their neck, Bittrex had to agree on a cash settlement. The amount of money in the deal is worth around 24 million USD.
Bittrex is one of the smaller crypto exchanges in the United States. Apparently, larger crypto exchanges like Binance.US and Coinbase usually take the limelight when issues relating to regulatory problems come up. But the issue is that the United States is fast becoming a nightmare for many crypto exchanges. Bittrex became a victim when the Securities and Exchange Commission charged them with illegal operations. Furthermore, the SEC says Bittrex made billions of dollars from selling illicit securities. Let’s jump right into the details of the case!
Outlook of the Bittrex Case
The SEC sued Bittrex after making their filing on April 17, 2023, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. Apparently, the basis of their case was illegalities on the part of Bittrex. Even more, they accused Bittrex of operating as an illegal exchange and broker. At the same time, the SEC said Bittrex sold illegal securities which might pose a risk to US investors.
This case happened in 2017, and it is still dragging on for the longest time. But it is often not heard in the news since other prominent exchanges like Binance and Coinbase take all the space. Shihara, the company’s CEO from 2014 to 2019, wasn’t left out in the case. SEC alleged collaborations between Shihara and other exchanges to bring in illegal securities for users.
Then from 2017 to 2022, the SEC made new allegations against Bittrex. Furthermore, the SEC added Bittrex made approximately 1.3 billion US dollars between 2017 to 2022 from illegal deals. But it seems the SEC and Bittrex Case is coming to an end.
The SEC and Bittrex Case Ends in Massive Settlement Deal
Earlier this year, Bittrex filed for bankruptcy. In fact, their reason for closing down connects with their current case with SEC. Bittrex is closing down because the crypto landscape in the United States is now daunting for firms. So the company said they could no longer sustain operations in the country. But that didn’t go without settling the SEC.
The terms of the settlement deal include a disgorgement of $14.4 million, prejudgment interest of $4 million, and a civil penalty of $5.6 million. On the other hand, Bittrex hasn’t said if the allegations against them are true or false. Also, they have from now till March next year to clear up these settlements.
Conclusion
The SEC and Bittrex Case were going behind the scenes without much knowledge of the crypto industry. It started in 2017, and 2023 seems like the perfect year to end it all. But it came with a fee, as Bittrex had to pay $24 million. Furthermore, they will also leave the United States after the case concludes.
