HONG KONG—BitMEX has pled guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act by failing to establish an adequate anti-money laundering program, with federal prosecutors saying the company operated without a meaningful AML program from 2015 to 2020.
In a statement, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said BitMEX’s actions made it a vehicle for money laundering and sanctions evasion, which threatened the financial system’s integrity, while Acting Assistant Director Christie M. Curtis said BitMEX knowingly disregarded AML procedures to increase revenue, thus failing to protect U.S. financial markets from illicit transactions.
The founders of BitMEX, Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, Samuel Reed, and first employee Gregory Dwyer, were found to have knowingly ignored AML and Know Your Customer requirements, AMB Crypto reported.
Just Need an Email Address
According to the report, the company required only an email address for service access and actively served U.S. customers despite regulatory obligations.
Prosecutors revealed that BitMEX executives took deliberate steps to circumvent U.S. laws, AMB Crypto added.