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Benjamin Delo, co-founder of cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX , was sentenced to 30 months of probation for violating the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), which is an anti-money laundering law.
The sentence, handed down in federal court in New York on June 15, after he pleaded guilty in February to "knowingly failing to establish, implement and maintain the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) program" in his role at BitMEX.
Prosecutors have argued that Delo should serve a year in prison or at least receive a two-year suspended sentence along with six months of home detention, as was given to former CEO Arthur Hayes in May.
For Delo, his lighter sentence closes the legal saga that began in October 2020, also prompting co-founders Hayes and Samuel Reed along with BitMEX's first official employee Gregory (Greg) Dwyer to be charged with the breach.
Judge John Koeltl called Delo's violations "very serious" and said That BitMEX is violating U.S. law by not deploying AML and knowing your customer system (KYC).
However, Judge Koeltl noted that the exchange then took steps to fix the problem and became compliant.
"When I look back, I see a fundamental failure to address a flaw in our system," Delo told the court, adding that it would have been his last haircut with the order for Delo to be allowed to enforce him deeply regretfully for actions that exposed him to the criminal justice system. probation in Hong Kong.
What was Judge Koeltl's final ruling?
Delo paid a $10 million fine to settle a court order from May in a civil case brought by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for violating aspects of the Goods Exchange Act.
A spokesman for Delo's legal team said after the sentencing hearing that it was pleased the court rejected "the cynical attempt of the seriousness of the Bank Secrecy Act charges in this case the government intends to exaggerate."
He said he intended to leave the U.S. for Hong Kong soon. A letter sent by Dwyer's lawyer to the court said "the parties continue to engage in discussions about a viable solution to the matter."
