Legal pressures on the cryptocurrency markets have led to numerous lawsuits and investigations over the years. In the new presidential term of Trump, the negative discrimination against cryptocurrencies is reversing, and a more constructive approach is being adopted. Trump has pardoned individuals convicted in related cryptocurrency cases.
Pardon for Crypto Leaders
U.S. President Donald Trump pardoned three co-founders of the BitMEX exchange. According to breaking news shared by CNBC, this action may not significantly impact the cryptocurrency sector but reflects the government’s changing stance toward it. The co-founders, Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed, were found guilty of money laundering and regulatory deficiencies.
Prosecutors accused these individuals of effectively operating BitMEX as a “money laundering platform.” The exchange, which claimed to withdraw from the U.S. market, faced scrutiny similar to that of Binance, which also served customers in the region. Numerous centralized exchanges faced penalties for offering services to U.S. citizens.
Now, the co-founders of BitMEX benefit from the pardon. While SBF’s parents are striving for a similar outcome, the obvious fraudulent activities prevent FTX’s founder from enjoying the same chance. It was revealed that FTX, which operated with considerable flexibility in the U.S. with Democratic support, had recklessly spent billions of dollars in customer assets, making generous donations to Democrats. SBF had claimed he would spend $1 billion on the 2024 elections before the collapse.