Bittrex Faces Action From SEC
- Antwan Koss
- April 17, 2023
- Crypto, news
- Crypto, Crypto news, regulation
- 0 Comments
Despite preparing for a full shutdown, Bittrex, a US-based cryptocurrency exchange is facing actions from the regulator SEC. US Securities and Exchanges Commission’s enforcement division is indicating the commission to sue Bittrex over allegations that involved protecting the rights of the investors as per a report in the Wall Street Journal dated April 16th.
Understanding the matter
Bittrex was informed by the enforcement division about the potential actions that they are about to face in March. David Maria, Bittrex’s general counsel reported that by the time they were thinking of a complete shutdown, the exchange received a notice called Wells notice. There it was mentioned that the exchange was doing business without being registered with the regulator.
As per Maria, the company had discussed with the regulator regarding the process of registration somewhere in late 2022. Maria also said that Bittrex was not able to apply for the registration process due to very less guidance and information provided by the regulator.
The company is not clear whether there will be a lawsuit filed against them as they are planning to completely shut down their operations in the United States. Bittrex is ready to settle the matter if the regulators come forward with some sensible offer.
This is not the only legal issue faced by Bittrex. In 2022, the company faced allegations from the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the United States. The company settled the matter by paying a hefty fee of $29M. The settlement was related to the issue that the company did not do business as per law in many countries like Sudan, Iraq, Syria, Cuba.
