On Friday, reports emerged concerning investigations by the U.S. CFTC on BitMEX. These reports were soon followed by a report from Bloomberg confirming the reports from different sources. It was confirmed that regulators were investigating whether the exchange allowed U.S. traders to use its platform.

The U. S. CFTC considers cryptocurrencies like bitcoin as commodities and has guidelines over derivatives such as futures based on cryptocurrencies. As a result, BitMEX has to be registered with the agency to allow Americans trade such products in the U.S. On its website, BitMEX offers trading of cryptocurrencies with up to 100 times leverage and other products such as futures and swaps. Bloomberg mentioned that the CFTC investigation is still ongoing and may not lead to misconduct allegations. Although, these details have not yet been confirmed by either BitMEX or the CFTC.

Roubini calls BitMEX a money laundering ‘rekting racket’

BitMEX continues to make headlines after a showdown between CEO Arthur Hayes and crypto skeptic Nouriel Roubini earlier in July. Some days ago, Nouriel Roubini attacked BitMEX, claiming the cryptocurrency exchange may be openly involved in systematic illegality. The renowned economists argued that, in providing such high leverage, the platform is exposing traders to excess risk. While citing an anonymous blog, Roubini also claimed that the exchange trades against its own clients and goes against anti-money laundering regulations. CEO of BitMEX, Arthur Hayes, previously mentioned it never trades against clients. Hayes also told Bloomberg this week:

“We continue to monitor all legal and regulatory developments around the world and will comply with all applicable laws and regulations, we reject any allegations of criminality, manipulation or unfair treatment of our customers, who are at the center of everything we do.”

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.