Former US Coinbase employee and two others charged with insider trading
Also: Three Charged In First Ever Cryptocurrency Insider Trading Tipping Scheme (U.S. Attorney's Office - SDNY)
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Source: The Guardian and agencies
Former US Coinbase employee and two others charged with insider trading
Cryptocurrency exchange manager and his brother arrested in Seattle in what is described as the first case of its kind
Dan Milmo and agency
Thu 21 Jul 2022 19.01 BST
Last modified on Thu 21 Jul 2022 19.27 BST
A former Coinbase employee and two others have been charged in what federal authorities described as the US government’s first cryptocurrency insider trading case.
Ishan Wahi, a product manager at the cryptocurrency exchange, and his brother Nikhil Wahi were arrested in Seattle on Thursday. They and a third defendant, their friend Sameer Ramani, who remains at large, also face civil charges from the US financial watchdog, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Prosecutors alleged that Ishan Wahi, 32, shared confidential information about forthcoming announcements of new cryptocurrency assets that Coinbase was planning or considering listing on its exchange. His brother and Ramani allegedly traded at least 14 times before such announcements between June 2021 and April 2022, prosecutors said.
Nikhil Wahi, 26, and Ramani, 33, used anonymous ethereum blockchain wallets to acquire the assets before Coinbase’s announcements and then sold those assets for a profit of at least $1.5m (£1.25m), prosecutors claimed.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/jul/21/former-us-coinbase-employee-and-two-others-charged-with-insider-trading
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Source: U.S. Attorney's Office - Southern District of New York
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, July 21, 2022
Three Charged In First Ever Cryptocurrency Insider Trading Tipping Scheme
Former Coinbase Employee Allegedly Tipped His Brother and Friend Regarding Crypto Assets That Were Going to be Listed on Coinbase Exchanges
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Michael J. Driscoll, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today the unsealing of an Indictment charging ISHAN WAHI, a former product manager at Coinbase Global, Inc. (“Coinbase”), NIKHIL WAHI, and SAMEER RAMANI, with wire fraud conspiracy and wire fraud in connection with a scheme to commit insider trading in cryptocurrency assets by using confidential Coinbase information about which crypto assets were scheduled to be listed on Coinbase’s exchanges. ISHAN WAHI and NIKHIL WAHI were arrested this morning in Seattle, Washington and will be presented today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. SAMEER RAMANI was also charged today and remains at large.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Today’s charges are a further reminder that Web3 is not a law-free zone. Just last month, I announced the first ever insider trading case involving NFTs, and today I announce the first ever insider trading case involving cryptocurrency markets. Our message with these charges is clear: fraud is fraud is fraud, whether it occurs on the blockchain or on Wall Street. And the Southern District of New York will continue to be relentless in bringing fraudsters to justice, wherever we may find them.”
FBI Assistant Director Michael J. Driscoll said: “Although the allegations in this case relate to transactions made in a crypto exchange - rather than a more traditional financial market – they still constitute insider trading. As alleged, the defendants made illegal trades in at least 25 different crypto assets and realized ill-gotten gains totaling approximately $1.5 million. Today’s action should demonstrate the FBI’s commitment to protecting the integrity of all financial markets – both ‘old’ and ‘new.’”
As alleged in the Indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court[1]:
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Read more: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/three-charged-first-ever-cryptocurrency-insider-trading-tipping-scheme
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